Rockville Centre To Hold Community Forum On 5G

ROCKVILLE CENTRE, NY — The Village of Rockville Centre will be hosting a community forum on 5G small cell applications on Oct. 19 at 3 p.m., via Zoom and recorded for those who cannot participate.

With some communities beginning the installation of 5G, the village anticipates receiving 5G small cell applications from Verizon in the near future, with other carriers likely to follow shortly thereafter. In order to inform the public about these coming applications, the village has scheduled the community forum and will feature a representative from the New York Conference of Mayors, the village attorney and other village representatives, as well as representatives from Verizon. The forum will also provide an opportunity for questions and answers.

While 5G promises faster communication and greater bandwidth than existing technologies, the it requires small cell antennae distributed throughout communities. These will supplement cell towers, which will still be required. Because 5G signals travel shorter distances, numerous local antennae sites are needed. Most of these sites will be located on poles or other structures, at a possible density up to 150 per square mile.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted regulations designed to promote the installation of these small cells. These regulations substantially reduce the ability of local governments to regulate the number, location or design of the small cell antennae and related equipment. In addition, the FCC regulations impose strict time limits within which local governments must act on permit applications, which effectively prevent public hearings. Failure of a local government to adhere to the federal regulations can lead to default approvals, and attorneys’ fees against the local government.

The Zoom webinar may be accessed at https://zoom.us/j/97980312278 with webinar ID 979 8031 2278. Audio is also available by phone at (646) 558-8656, using the same ID. Residents can submit questions via feedback at feedback@rvcny.us. The forum will be re-broadcasted on the village website and the village television station, Optimum’s channel 18 or Verizon’s channel 37.