Solution to cellphone tower controversy lies with Bell Mobility
The bad feelings over this proposal have created a nasty atmosphere in the community that has long prided itself as one being one of Scarborough's most pleasant enclaves.
The situation goes back to an announcement late last year that Guildwood Presbyterian Church, at the corner of Livingston Road and Guildwood Parkway, had entered into a 20-year lease with Bell Mobility to build a 35-metre cellphone tower on its property.
The church intended to use the money it collected on the lease for charitable works. Bell wanted the location as it would improve cellphone reception in the low-lying area.
However, a number of residents were furious with the plan. Public meetings were heated and well-attended, with concerns over health being expressed by those opposed to the tower.
The opposition went so far as to picket the church one Sunday morning before a service in December.
Not surprisingly, such a community reaction shook the members of the church who had agreed to the lease. Earlier this month, the church told Bell Mobility it wanted out of the deal.
Clearly, the church has chosen the route of neighbourhood peace and 'love thy neighbour' over its charitable plans.
In a letter sent by church spokesperson Bruce Morrison requesting Bell to release them from the lease, he wrote that the church's local leadership "under-estimated the severity of the reaction" in the neighbourhood and concluded that the tower would "impair the ability of the church to serve the community."
It didn't make much fanfare about its decision, though, and news of the request to cancel the cellphone tower lease came as a surprise to both its opponents and the local councillor when The Mirror called for comment.
Given that the congregation had to make its way through protesters on the way to services, one can perhaps understand why the church was wary of holding a press conference about its decision.
It's going to take a long time for some of the bad feelings generated by this situation to fade, but hopefully they will with time.
However, that can only happen if Bell Mobility goes along with the church's request and it has yet to decide.
If for some reason Bell Mobility decides to play hardball and insists its deal must be honoured and the cellphone tower built, the bad blood in Guildwood will only intensify.
This time, though, the target of those opposed to the tower can only be Bell Mobility itself. We think the company would be unwise to force the issue given its history in the community.
We would also expect that if Bell Mobility still wants the tower in Guildwood, that local residents opposed to it will picket the company's offices, not the church, and will throw their cellphones in the lake.
