A 114-foot Verizon Wireless cell tower could be built near the sixth hole tee boxes at the Medford, Ore., golf course, if the town’s planning commission approves a conditional use permit. The proposed tower will be planted next to a 91-foot evergreen near the maintenance area sand box, and a 15-foot-tall cedar hedge will conceal the base.

Verizon Wireless is proposing to build a 114-foot cell tower near the sixth hole tee boxes at Rogue Valley Country Club in Medford, Ore., the Medford-based Mail Tribune reported.

Neighbor Frank Brown isn’t necessarily bothered by another cell tower growing out of the country club’s maintenance area. What disturbs the 75-year-old who moved into the neighborhood in 2002, however, is potential health effects of 24/7 radio frequency radiation. A 93-foot cell tower thinly veiled as a fir tree was approved about the time Brown and his wife, Paula, moved from Ashland, the Tribune reported.

“I eyeball that one from my front porch,” Brown said. “I’m not interested in the aesthetics. What I am interested in is one, my property value, and two, the radio frequency; I’ve read everything about RF, and it’s not very satisfying to me. Why do Israel and Sweden have big-time rules about cell towers and we don’t?”

The Medford Planning Commission will consider Verizon’s conditional use permit request Thursday night, the Tribune reported.

“The proposed site is needed to increase capacity, meaning that Verizon Wireless’ existing sites are reaching their full capacity for data and call usage,” Verizon spokesperson Heidi Flato said. “With mobile data use trends rapidly accelerating, it’s necessary to build additional wireless facilities in order to handle the increased traffic on our network in the Medford area.”

In its application for a monopine tower, Verizon said it can’t locate equipment on the existing tower, owned by U.S. Cellular and shared with AT&T, because it needs to be perched 100 feet off the ground. Space above 50 feet on the existing tower, 600 feet to the west, isn’t available. The proposed location is near a stand of tall trees, Verizon noted, adding it will blend in, the Tribune reported.

The tower will be planted next to a 91-foot evergreen near the maintenance area sand box. A 15-foot-tall cedar hedge will conceal the base, the Tribune reported.