Cellular phone towers/effect on value?

[Joe Birrell (NY)]

We several cell towers on Staten Island (Todt Hill, highest point in New York City and along the shore line of eastcoast). There is no apparent negative impact on values. Newest tower is disguised as "Lighthouse", other towers are standard types. Initially, there is an uproar from local community (immediate area of tower), but after awhile, nobody notices them. The one disguised as Lighthouse is located in highest value area of all (+-$500,000 to $3.5 million dollar homes) - rich people always live on hills, and they have learned to live with cell towers.

 

[Austin]

Joe: You lighthouse cell tower story is interesting. I was visiting Marietta Georgia, a very upscale subdivision area, and my brother-in-law took me to see some of the local novelties. First on the list was a cellular telephone tower among pine trees and the tower was an artificial pine tree complete with limbs, pinecones, pine needles, and the color of a pine tree. Instead of being detraction, it was a novelty and everybody seemed to enjoy it. Along the same lines, at Virginia Beach, Virginia, there is a large filled up city garbage dump that has been converted into a recreation park. The trash was buried with huge mounds of sand with the recreation area is on top of the mounds. It is called Mount Trashmore. Quite an attraction!

 

[Dee Dee]

Our local fire station has a cell tower neatly disguised as a tree to blend in with the environment, and my neighbor has one hidden in a turret of his stone castle.
Many of the surrounding neighbors fought off having towers installed, citing everything from visual disgrace to the possibility of causing cancer.
Fortunately the cell companies have been able to address those issues and provide better service in our outlying area.

Dee Dee