Residents have been left furious after a huge 5G mast appeared in their cul-de-sac with 'no warning'.
Claire Brophy last week told how she 'nearly had a heart attack' when she returned home from work to find the 65ft 'rocket' pole looming on the other side of her garden fence. Neighbours in Balderstone, Rochdale, have told the Manchester Evening News of their "extreme disappointment".
Amy Openshaw said: "It isn't nice to look at. When you're in the rooms at the top of the stairs, it is there, in your face.
"We literally went to work and came home and it was there. I'll probably tell more when all the leaves start dropping off, I'll see it a lot more then. There is a lot of open space where it could've gone, rather than literally there."
Rochdale council refused planning permission for the installation in March last year because it would ‘represent an incongruous and dominant feature’ near homes. But the decision was overturned, and residents now say they simply came home one day to find the mast installed within touching distance of their back gardens.
Amy said she has been left powerless to stop it, and joked: "Unless I went over and tried to take it down myself"
One resident, who wanted to stay anonymous, told the M.E.N that they were 'not a NIMBY', but wished they had had better communication about the pole.
"I came home from work to find that this monstrosity had been erected at the back of my property," they said. "We are extremely disappointed and angry that we were not given a chance to appeal this decision."
Mobile infrastructure firm Cornerstone said it ‘gives great consideration to minimising the visual impact’ of its equipment - but residents in Melbourne Close, Balderstone, aren't convinced.
"There are other places in the same area where this could have gone causing less obstruction to neighbouring properties," the neighbour told the M.E.N. "Unfortunately I'm aware it had to go somewhere and they are an eyesore wherever they go."
Ange and Lee Shepherd, who live on the same road as Claire, said they aren't as bothered by the mast but did wish they'd had some warning.
"To be honest, the only bits that ever annoyed us were when they were doing all the works and I struggled to get my car in and out," Ange said. "But the only place we can really see it from is the back bedroom.
"It doesn't really bother me, but I can see why it would. But it's the price you pay for progress, isn't it."
Ange told the M.E.N that her and Lee received no notice about the mast's erection, but were irritated by the construction noise that came before it, saying they made a 'right racket'.
"Then next thing I knew, there it was," she said. "For us, it isn't an eyesore. It's not really an issue. There are lots of trees in the way."
Rochdale MP Tony Lloyd says he will be contacting the government ministers responsible for the Planning Inspectorate to ask them to ‘urgently’ look into the matter. “Nobody should come home to find such a monstrosity with seemingly grossly inadequate consultation and no consideration for the view from her house,” he said.
Cornerstone said it understands its mobile infrastructure impacts communities and ‘gives great consideration to minimising the visual impact’ of its equipment. “We aim to ensure they blend into the area as much as is possible while enabling quality digital connectivity to the communities we serve,” the company said in a statement.
“Cornerstone proposed a base station in Balderstone, Rochdale, to provide essential network connectivity including 5G services to the area. Unfortunately the proposed base station was refused by the Local Planning Authority [the council]. Following this refusal we reviewed all our options, but concluded that the proposed site remained the best option locally.
“A planning appeal was progressed and ultimately allowed. The site has now been developed and screening provided by adjacent trees will minimise views of the proposal within much of the local area.”
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