Green light for phone tower in

The application was rejected in August after concerns expressed by the community, Lake Joondalup Baptist College and Connolly Primary School about the potential health impacts of electromagnetic emissions from the proposed 20-metre tower.

The applicant, Telstra, then sought a review of the council’s decision by the State Administrative Tribunal where the presiding member indicated the City did not have acceptable planning reasons to refuse the application.

At the council meeting, Cr Tom McLean said he and Cr Kerry Hollywood had attended a mediation session with school and parent representatives, Telstra and its expert consultant.

‘I think all sides benefited from this process. We learnt a lot about the technical aspects and we were provided with much more readily understood information,’ he said.

‘We were all much more comfortable and I’ve had positive feedback from the schools and parent representatives.’

Cr John Chester said the City needed to be ‘more accommodating in allowing phone tower applications, particularly if they are located in industrial areas’.

The application was approved unanimously.