Objectors vow to continue fight against Telstra Tower at Bushfield

A planning permit for the $250,000 project to build a 35-metre 4G and 5G tower on land along the Hopkins Highway is back before council after the existing application was re-notified.

The tower - which aims to improve the area's mobile phone coverage - has moved 260 metres further north in a bid to ease concerns after community backlash to the original location.

But objector Doug Gall said the new site was "even worse" than the old one.

He said now it was so close to Mortlake Road it was not just residents on the east of the highway that were being impacted but people on the other side of the road.

Mr Gall said they were canvassing all residents and putting out flyers to get "as many objections as we can".

"This one is do or die really," he said.

"If you get enough objections from residents then Telstra will think twice about it.

"It's David and Goliath stuff, but you never know your luck. We've got to have a go."

The objectors are preparing to fight the project all the way to the Victoria Civil Administrative Tribunal.

"If we can get enough objections, I think Telstra would have to have a real good hard look at it but otherwise we all end up in VCAT," Mr Gall said. "If we can avoid that, that would be great but if it happens it happens.

"We're definitely as opposed to it as we've always been, possibly more so."

Mr Gall said objectors were not opposed to the tower itself, but residents did not want to be living between two towers. An NBN/Optus tower is already sited at the nearby Bushfield Recreation Reserve.

Mr Gall said objectors would be approaching councillors on mass but even if they could get enough councillors to vote against it, Telstra could still take it to VCAT.

Community members and the council will discuss the issue on Monday.

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