How should Leelanau Township handle the proposed Kitchen Road communication tower?

Township of Leelanau, Leelanau County, Michigan Infrastructure Public Safety

Leelanau Township has a Special Land Use Permit application for a new communication tower at 11015 Kitchen Road. Communication towers can improve cell service, emergency communications, and reliability for residents, visitors, and public-safety users. The dispute is about siting. Some residents may value better coverage, especially in emergencies or for everyday work and travel. Others may worry about views, nearby property impacts, tower height, lighting, maintenance, and whether the selected location is the least disruptive option. The township must decide how much weight to give public need, technical coverage, zoning standards, and neighborhood concerns. Better coverage matters, especially when people need help, but the township still has to prove this site and these conditions make sense.

Overall results

1

55% support · excluded by 9%

7

People can support better service and still ask why this exact road and this exact parcel have to carry the impact.

7

Coverage maps, alternative-site analysis, and co-location review should come before approval, not after residents are told there is no choice.

2

52% support · excluded by 6%

7

The question should be what conditions reduce harm while still solving the coverage problem.

3

48% support · excluded by 11%

7

Dropped calls and weak service are not just annoyances in a rural township. They can become safety problems.

4

44% support · excluded by 9%

7

The township should not sacrifice a rural road and nearby neighbors just because a provider wants the easiest site.

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