Right now, a cell phone tower, almost as tall as Busch Garden's Iron Gwazi, is being proposed just outside a Westchase neighborhood. Those neighbors are saying, "Not in my backyard." Monday morning, the permit proposal went before the Hillsborough County land use hearing officer. It was standing room only as neighbors in opposition, dressed in red, expressed their concerns about a 195-foot cell tower looming over their neighborhood. Tampa-based Skyway Towers LLC is requesting a special permit to build a T-Mobile cell tower, camouflaged as a pine tree, on property owned by the Philippines Cultural Foundation on Nine Eagles Drive. At Monday's meeting, they explained T-Mobile needs to fill a coverage gap in the area. T-Mobile Radio Frequency Engineer Byron Elkins said, "In order to offer reliable ultra-capacity 5G coverage, this tower is required at this height and for that purpose." Neighbors who oppose the plan cite aesthetics and safety concerns, namely the steel needles of the "pine tree design" falling during major storms. "What happens if it fell?" Chris Evanich said. "If the tower fell into the road, blocking ingress and egress?" MORE: https://www.wtsp.com/article/tech/cell-tower-controversy-permit-for-195-foot-5g-tower-in-westchase-in-hands-of-hillsborough-land-use-officer/67-ecbcf218-2bca-4334-a59c-e51c9f9f4a94 ►Subscribe: https://on.wtsp.com/youtube ►Website: https://www.wtsp.com/ ►Facebook: https://facebook.com/10TampaBay ►X: https://twitter.com/10TampaBay