Golden – A local TV station was thwarted Wednesday in its bid to replace two FM radio antennas on its Lookout Mountain tower with a digital TV antenna.
The Jefferson County Board of Adjustment denied KWGN-Channel 2’s proposal by a 4-1 vote, upholding a 2002 decision by the county zoning administrator that the digital antenna would violate county zoning regulations.
“We will appeal to the district court,” said KWGN’s attorney, Paul Franke.
KWGN’s request to update its 488-foot-high tower is the latest chapter in a saga to broadcast high-definition TV signals from the mountain.
In a separate effort, representatives of the Lake Cedar Group – a consortium of local TV channels 4, 7, 9 and 20 – have fought for nearly eight years to replace three major towers on Lookout Mountain with a 730-foot-high tower that would broadcast digital signals to the metro area. Their efforts included lobbying Congress.
Two weeks ago, the 109th Congress approved without debate Senate Bill 4092, which would allow anyone who holds an approved Federal Communications Commission permit to build a tower or install an antenna on Lookout Mountain for digital TV broadcasts.
The surprise bill was sponsored by Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., and co-sponsored by Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo.
Franke said KWGN officials believe their proposal is covered under the bill, which is awaiting President Bush’s signature.
Insiders say it is unlikely Bush will veto the bill since he has vetoed only one bill in six years. Opponents of the towers say they are losing the fight.
“Now we have this bill, and our only protection is the FCC, and we know that’s an utter joke,” said Deb Carney, attorney for the Canyon Area Residents for the Environment, or CARE, a group of Lookout Mountain area homeowners associations. “Local zoning has been eliminated by SB4092. We’re being overrun by the wolves.”
Allard and Salazar said Congress needed to intervene to ensure that Denver would meet the FCC’s deadline of Feb. 17, 2009, to provide digital TV signals to more than 600,000 metro area residents who rely on free TV and not cable or satellite.
After that date, the FCC will reallocate the analog TV frequencies. “The choice is simple: We go digital or we go dark,” Allard said previously.
CARE and the city of Golden, which had challenged Lake Cedar Group’s plan and is pursuing condemnation of the tower site, are looking at options, including a court challenge on constitutional grounds.
Two of Jefferson County’s three commissioners, Jim Congrove and Dave Auburn, signed a Dec. 13 letter urging Bush to veto the bill, saying it is in “violation of their (members of Congress’) oath of office.” Commissioner Kevin McCasky said he would have signed the letter if it hadn’t stated the passage was a violation of their oath, saying Allard and Salazar are honorable men. McCasky said that while he was concerned about Congress’ stepping in, the tower issue transcends county authority.
Staff writer Ann Schrader can be reached at 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com.
