T-Mobile and APC Towers III are suing the Wichita City Council, seeking a federal court order that would force the city to allow the telecom to place a tower in the Riverside area, reported the Wichita Eagle. The suit alleges that the city violated the Telecommunications Act by rejecting two proposals—one for a 100-foot tower and one for an 80-foot tower—at two different sites, after residents complained about aesthetics and reduced property values in their historic neighborhood.
According to the lawsuit, “To provide the service consumers demand, T-Mobile must build wireless facilities that will provide wireless signal coverage and also adequate network capacity to accommodate the radical increase in use. But Plaintiffs have encountered a general, ‘not in my back yard’ ‘NIMBY’ opposition to wireless facilities in the target area.”
The lawsuit seeks a court order directing City Hall to issue all necessary permits to build the tower, plus cover T-Mobile’s costs and attorney fees from the court case, according to the Eagle.