Winter Springs commissioners talk plans on ‘horrible’ 5G towers going up, as 14 more applications come through 

Winter Springs has at least 14 applications from Verizon to put 5G towers in the city – and another handful of the towers have recently been installed in the city, and not everyone is happy about it. 

Commissioners on Monday heard from a resident upset about towers rising in the Tuscawilla neighborhood, and some commissioners complained about the towers’ appearance. But commissioners acknowledged there’s little that can be done after a 2017 state law restricts local governments’ ability to regulate the towers. 

“The towers look, in my opinion, horrible,” Commissioner Mark Caruso said. 

City Attorney Anthony Garganese said the city has little control over these cellphone towers. Once an application is submitted, the city has two weeks to decide if the application is “complete,” a subjective term with some wiggle-room for city influence. The city can suggest an alternative site, but only for limited reasons, like pedestrian or vehicle safety. The city can’t even require the cellular carrier to have a meeting to discuss the towers.

“There’s a shot clock to make all of this happen,” Garganese, borrowing a basketball analogy, said. 

City Manager Kevin Sweet said the towers are key for future technological use, like autonomous vehicles. He said Verizon is making the investments because there are also issues with coverage. 

“If not in my backyard, then somebody else’s backyard,” Sweet said. “Nobody likes these. I fully agree with the commissioner that aesthetically it’s not something we want to see.”

5G towers have sparked concerns about potential harm from the radio waves they emit, though they use similar technology to older wireless networks. Commissioner Victoria Bruce said she wants staff to suggest alternative locations if the towers are proposed near residential housing. 

“If these future [towers] come about in an application and they are X amount of … feet from a home, staff will work with Verizon or whoever the wireless technical company is to propose another location, such as the other side of the street,” Bruce said. 

Commissioner Sarah Baker said she liked that idea, and wanted staff to look into possible camouflaging as well. Mayor Kevin McCann also liked that idea.

“We can’t move it from one person’s house and then put it in front of somebody else’s house, but if Sam Smith Park is available, if there’s somewhere else where it is possible,” McCann said. 

“Let’s try,” Bruce added. 

Commissioners also urged residents to talk to members of the Florida Legislature on the issue. Groups like the Florida League of Cities and the Florida Association of Counties have opposed the state law weakening local control over the towers, and grassroots organizations like the Florida Coalition for Safe Technology also oppose it.   

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Drive-in oil change proposed for Winter Springs Town Center

The Commission also got a presentation about a possible new business in the Winter Springs Town Center. 

Strickland Brothers 10 Minute Oil Change is considering applying to put a 1,920-square-foot drive-in oil change near the planned Ace Hardware, Chick-fil-A and PNC Bank. It’s at the southeast corner of the intersection of Tuskawilla Road and State Road 434. 

Neeraj Sharma, the owner of a Strickland Brothers franchise, already has a location in Longwood. She said she would be willing to change the aesthetics to match the Town Center. 

She also addressed environmental concerns about the below-ground service “pits” used in the oil-change business, since the facility is near wetlands and Lake Jessup. “Those pits are completely sealed,” Sharma said. “Environmentally, all of our oil stays above ground. There are no ways for that oil to actually go into (stormwater) drains.”

Caruso said residents consistently say they want more restaurants in the Town Center. Commissioner Cade Resnick said the project doesn’t fit with the zoning in the Town Center, which is designed to be more walkable.

Resnick said the city should wait for the right business. 

“We have spent a lot of time putting the Town Center code together for a reason,” Resnick said. “There’s lots of commercial (businesses) allowed, and this just isn’t one of them.”

The presentation was non-binding, and was done to gauge the interest of the Commission before a full application is put in. Calls to the applicant were not returned before deadline. 

McCann also agreed that an oil change shop wasn’t his “first choice.” But, he added, with the other developments on the site, there isn’t much space left. 

“That leaves a very small parcel of land and not much else can fit,” McCann said. 

In other news, the Winter Springs City Commission: 

• Agreed that a Charter Review Committee would look at the entire charter, and not just specific portions. An enactment ordinance is expected at the next meeting. 
• Is planning a meeting the last week in March to discuss the city’s stormwater master plan. The city is still debating what to do with hybrid and private stormwater ponds, and what that will do to rates residents pay. The city is also considering whether to take on debt so stormwater projects can be done faster. 
• Announced that applications for a free tree for Arbor Day will be accepted through March 13. Residents can register for a free tree now through Friday, March 13 at 5 p.m.