Hamilton Planning Board Orders Peer Review Before Cell Tower Hearing Can Open

HAMILTON — March 18, 2026 — Hamilton Planning Board sets peer review requirement for proposed 110-foot cell tower at public safety complex. The board held a pre-application conference March 18 with attorney Brian Grossman of Strang Scott & Giroux, representing EIP Communications 1 LLC — an Everest Infrastructure Partners entity — on a proposed self-supporting galvanized monopole to be built behind the police and fire station on Bay Road. The tower would reach 110 feet above ground level, the maximum allowed under the bylaw without a waiver, and would accommodate Verizon as anchor tenant, two additional co-locators, and municipal police, fire, and DPW communications. Chair Pat Norton told the applicant the board would retain a peer reviewer at the applicant's expense under Section 7.2 of the zoning bylaw: "The planning board is going to need to engage a peer reviewer who can provide us with the guidance we need." The board set a preferred balloon test schedule of two days, Saturday and Sunday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with dates to be coordinated with Town Planner Mark Connors once the formal application is filed. The board also voted 6-0 to approve a revised UTL Associates town center code scope of work dated March 10, 2026, covering 47 hours of educational guide and code materials with a June 30 expenditure deadline.