In Palos Verdes Estates, where the first home builders 80 years ago had to pass muster before an “art jury,” it came as little surprise when city fathers nixed wireless telecommunications contraptions that would clash with the community’s carefully nurtured ambience and obstruct ocean vistas.
“When you move to a community, you want cell coverage, but you also want beauty and aesthetics,” said attorney Scott J. Grossberg, who helped the city wage a legal battle against Sprint.
Earlier this month, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the seaside community, ruling that city officials could bar the construction of unsightly cellular towers. The city’s victory was hailed by urban planners concerned about the proliferation of visual blight in the name of technological progress.