Signs like this one on Barbour Road marked local resistance to Vertex Towers' plan for a 150-foot cell tower in Hampton. (Deb Cram, Seacoastonline.com)
HAMPTON — A federal judge has rejected most of telecommunications developer Vertex Towers’ legal challenge to build a 150-foot cellular tower on residential land in Hampton, dealing the company a significant setback.
Judge Paul J. Barbadoro granted summary judgment to the town and its Zoning Board of Adjustments on three of the four counts in Vertex’s lawsuit, but allowed one claim to proceed: that the board’s denial “effectively prohibited” wireless service in violation of federal law.
Vertex sued the town and its Zoning Board in U.S. District Court in February 2024, contesting a unanimous vote the month prior that denied its application to construct the tower at 17R Barbour Road. The company argued the structure was necessary to fill a one-to-two-mile coverage gap east of Route 1.
Because the site lies outside Hampton’s telecommunications zone and the tower would exceed the town’s 100-foot height limit, Vertex needed special approval from the Zoning Board.
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