The Society has learnt that the Three (3) network propose a new mast for 5G on the green area between the Warwick Road and the service road outside the Knowle Surgery.
After due consideration the Society has registered an objection to this particular location (although not to the principle of improved connectivity) mainly based on the impact on the conservation area:-
The Society recognises the importance of this Proposal and the need for the provision of services, but the suggested location causes much concern, it being entirely within the Knowle Conservation Area, a designated Heritage Asset, and also contrary to Neighbourhood Plan Policy U1: Mobile Phone and Broadband Infrastructure.
We are told the proposed 20m (65 foot) Mast will assimilate well into the immediate street scene and not be detrimental. When approaching Knowle from Solihull the Mast and cabinets will be clearly seen. It is not clear why is this a ‘preferable location’? Other sites have been discounted for various reasons which also apply to this site, it being located directly opposite private dwellings and the Doctor’s Surgery.
To quote the Applicant’s own words ‘…new 5G mast infrastructure within an urban setting requires highly considered balance between the need to extend practical coverage reach with that of increasing risk of visual amenity intrusion.‘ To obtain this ‘balance’, and the fact that the setting is hardly anything which remotely could be considered as ‘urban’, the Society would encourage ‘mast-sharing’ with that located near Junction 5 on the M42 which, presumably, also provides 5G capability.