Movement Updates & Change Log

Forty-Nine Days Late. Two Days After the Appeal Clock Expired. Ten Days After They Had It Ready.

On May 8, 2026, after a 49-calendar-day stall, NYSTA Records Access Officer Jill B. Warner produced 93 records in response to FOIL Request #R000082-032026 — just two business days after our constructive-denial appeal clock expired. The full set is now all 93 records are catalogued at the FOIL evidence catalog. Here is what the documents prove.

1. There Is No Alternative Site Analysis. NYSTA Admitted It in Writing.

Item 7 of the original FOIL request asked for the engineering or planning analysis showing why a 184-foot commercial tower had to be built on top of a residential neighborhood, 1.25 miles from a bald eagle roost, ~100 feet from an active highway off-ramp. The response, verbatim from RAO Warner’s May 8 letter:

“No records responsive to Item 7 were located.”
— Jill B. Warner, Records Access Officer, NYS Thruway Authority, May 8, 2026

No engineering, no planning, no alternatives study was ever conducted. A bedrock siting requirement was skipped, and NYSTA has now confirmed it on agency letterhead.

2. NYSTA Wrote Into Its Own Permit That It Can Yank This Tower Tomorrow.

Section II.A of PTI Occupancy Permit T3U250002, in NYSTA’s own words:

“There is no term. This Occupancy Permit is revocable, unilaterally, upon demand by the Authority...”
— Section II.A, PTI Occupancy Permit T3U250002, issued June 23, 2025

Every “we’re locked in” excuse falls here. NYSTA can terminate PTI’s right to occupy this site at any time, for any reason, with no penalty. This is a political choice, not a legal constraint.

3. The Surrounding Parcel Is Zoned R-O (Residence-Office).

AT&T’s own construction drawings (Rev 2, November 7, 2025), Sheet T01, lists the Zoning District as R-O (Residence-Office). R-O is a residential zoning class. Under any local approval process, a 184-foot commercial telecommunications structure does not belong on R-O zoning. The state-land preemption was used precisely to bypass it. Read AT&T’s drawings.

4. AT&T’s Internal Site Name Is “Liverpool BOCES.”

The construction drawings and mount analysis filenames carry AT&T’s site identifier: “Liverpool BOCES.” AT&T uses internal site names tied to nearby landmarks. BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services) operates the OCM BOCES program in the Liverpool/Salina area. School proximity to verify and surface. If a BOCES facility is within typical RF exposure radius, the children-near-RF angle was not on this campaign’s radar. (Source: AT&T FA #15412877, AT&T PTN #2151A0WTHG.)

5. The Annual Fee Is Redacted Under a Privacy Law That Doesn’t Apply to Corporations.

The Annual Fee paid by Phoenix Tower International — the rent for occupying public state land — is fully blacked out. NYSTA cited New York Public Officers Law §87(2)(b) (“personal privacy”). The Permittee is PTI US Towers I, LLC, a Delaware/Florida limited liability company. Under settled New York case law (Matter of Federation of N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Clubs v. NYPD, 73 N.Y.2d 92), the personal-privacy exemption protects natural persons, not corporations. The redaction is legally indefensible — and it is the central financial number of this entire project.

6. A 30 kW Diesel Generator and 145 Gallons of Fuel.

Buried in NYSTA Building Permit SYR-2025-003 (issued December 2, 2025 by Joshua Stagnitti, expires December 1, 2028) and confirmed on AT&T’s construction drawings: a 30 kilowatt diesel generator with a 145-gallon belly tank, mounted on a steel platform at grade inside a 50’×50’ fenced compound, ~100 feet from the active I-90 off-ramp. No Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) plan was produced. No air-quality compliance documentation was produced. No public meeting ever mentioned this. Read the permit.

7. Sabre Industries (Texas) Designed the Tower — Here Are Their Numbers.

The tower designer is Sabre Industries, Inc. of Alvarado, Texas, with engineer of record Robert Beacom (digital signature July 15, 2025; license expires July 31, 2026). The 36-page sealed structural design report (Job 25-3277-JDS-R1, Rev B) discloses every design parameter:

• Standard: ANSI/TIA-222-H (NY Building Code Chapter 35 references the older TIA-222-G-2005 — standards mismatch, never reconciled)
• Design wind speed: 109 mph (no ice) / 40 mph (with ice)
• Design ice thickness: 1.50 inches
• Risk Category: II — the lowest meaningful category, used for structures whose failure would not be expected to cause loss of life. Risk Category III arguably applies given the active I-90 ramp ~100 ft from the base, R-O residential zoning, and 145 gallons of diesel storage. Risk Category II reduces required design loads.
• Site Class: D (DEFAULT) — not field-verified.
• Base reactions at design wind: Axial 69.92 kips, Shear 48.07 kips, Moment 6,352.75 ft-kips, Deflection 9.54 ft, Sway 4.99°.
• Foundation: two options designed, type undecided in this report — matches the foundation-mismatch concern in NYSTA’s own engineering review.

Read the Sabre report.

8. NYSTA’s Own Engineer Caught the Project With Missing Paperwork — for Eight Months.

NYSTA Code Compliance Specialist Joshua Stagnitti documented in writing across five review cycles:

• 6/2/2025: “Structural Analysis Reports have not been submitted. Hazard Reports have not been submitted. Engineered lift plans have not been submitted.”
• 8/27/2025: AT&T review — “Construction Permit Application not submitted. Geotechnical Report not submitted. ASCE Hazard Reports not submitted. Full environmental assessment form not submitted.”
• 10/3/2025: Verizon’s footer was submitted at 3’-6”. NY Code minimum is 4’. Six inches below code on first round.
• 11/6/2025: AT&T Round 2 — foundation-type mismatch between the TEP Structural Analysis (drilled pier) and the approved construction plans (pad/pier). Closed without a reconciliation memo.
• 11/6/2025: The TIA-222-H vs. NY-Code 222-G-2005 standards mismatch closed only as “DRAWINGS UPDATED.” Never reconciled in the public record.

9. The Crane That Built It Was Filed Separately with the FAA.

FAA Aeronautical Study 2025-AEA-11322-OE (issued September 22, 2025) documents the construction crane: operator Clark Rigging & Rental, contact Mike Dombroski, 945 Spencer Street, Syracuse NY 13204. Crane height during construction: 220 ft AGL / 655 ft AMSL — taller than the finished tower. Read the FAA crane filing.

10. Salina Was Notified — But to the Wrong Supervisor.

The SEQRA determination cover letter and certified-mail green card (USPS 7019 1640 0000 0800 4105) is in the production. It was addressed to Nicholas Paro, Town Supervisor, 201 School Road, Liverpool NY 13088 — the predecessor to current Supervisor Raul Huerta. Mr. Paro signed for it. The response contains no record of any reply from the Town under the prior administration. See the separate correction entry below for the formal framing change. Supervisor Huerta inherited this — he remains an ally.

11. NYSTA Was Its Own SEQRA Lead Agency.

From the FEAF Part 3: NYSTA classified the action as Type I, designated itself Lead Agency, then issued itself a Negative Declaration. Self-review on public land. The bald eagle dismissal cited the “USFWS Northeast Determination Key” — a self-serve web tool, not a formal Section 7 consultation, and not a USFWS letter. Read the SEQRA file.

12. They Had the Documents Ready — and Kept Them Anyway.

The PDF metadata of the redacted PTI Occupancy Permit (both the “Cell Tower” and “Occupancy Permit” copies) carries Adobe Acrobat redaction-completion timestamps of April 28, 2026:

• 10:46:33 EDT — redactions saved on file 1 (Occupancy Permit copy)
• 10:50:43 EDT — redactions saved on file 2 (Cell Tower copy)
• XMP toolkit signature x:xmptk="Adobe XMP Core 9.1-c001 79.675d0f7" identifies the redaction tool as Adobe Acrobat
• Triple-verified across three independent extractions (exiftool, pdfinfo, raw XMP byte stream); UTC and EDT timestamps converge to the same wall-clock moment

That is six days after the deadline NYSTA “blew” on April 22, and the consecutive four-minute timing across two related permit PDFs indicates a single-sitting redaction workflow — one operator, one Adobe Acrobat session, two saves, both files done. NYSTA then withheld the finalized records for ten additional days, releasing them on May 8 — two business days after our appeal clock under POL §89(4)(a) had run.

Under POL §89(4)(c), a court awarding attorney’s fees in a substantially-prevailing FOIL case must find the agency had no reasonable basis for the period of denial. A redaction-saved-on-April-28 / released-on-May-8 timeline is exactly what that standard contemplates. The contemporaneous metadata trace is preserved separately for evidentiary use.

What Happens Next

• Within 30 days (deadline ~June 7, 2026): Filing an administrative redaction appeal with the NYSTA Records Appeals Officer demanding the Annual Fee, the fee check amount, and the carrier sub-tenant rent terms. POL §89(4)(c) fee-shifting now supported by the April 28 finalize-and-withhold timestamp.
• Filing a follow-up FOIL targeting Verizon RFDS Project ID 17326150, T-Mobile RFDS, the SPCC plan for the diesel generator, and the lift plan as approved by NYSTA Traffic Control.
• Verifying proximity to OCM BOCES Liverpool facilities — AT&T’s “Liverpool BOCES” site name suggests school proximity worth confirming.
• Calculating the ice-shedding throw envelope using Sabre’s 1.5” design ice + 109 mph design wind + 184 ft tower height against the ~100 ft distance to the active off-ramp.
• Sending the redaction analysis to the NYS Committee on Open Government (COOG) for an advisory opinion, and a financial-audit referral to the NYS Authorities Budget Office and the Office of the State Comptroller.

The Documents Are Public.

Every document NYSTA produced is now catalogued by FOIL category at the FOIL evidence catalog. Read them. Cite them. They are the public record.

Forty-nine days bought us 93 records and a stack of admissions: no Alternative Site Analysis, an unilaterally revocable permit, R-O residential-office zoning bypassed by state-land preemption, a Texas-designed monopole built to a code New York doesn’t adopt, a 30 kW diesel generator the public never heard about, an internal site name pointing at a school district, and PDF metadata proving they had the documents ready ten days before they handed them over. The story NYSTA tried not to tell is now in writing.

Two FOIL Filings. Two Different Answers. One of Them Is Contradicted by the Public Record.

On March 20, 2026 at 2:29 PM, we filed a parallel FOIL request with the Town of Salina, asking for the same kinds of records we were also requesting from NYSTA — SEQRA documents, official correspondence with the applicant or NYSTA, public notices, and proof of mailing.

17 minutes later, at 2:46 PM, Town Clerk and FOIL Records Officer Paula Primerano replied:

“You request has been received. The Town of Salina is not in possession of any of the requested documents. The area you are referring to is owned by the NYS Thruway authority. The State does not need the Town’s permission to erect such towers.”
— Paula Primerano, Town Clerk / FOIL Records Officer, Town of Salina, March 20, 2026 at 2:46 PM

What NYSTA Just Produced Contradicts That Reply.

On May 8, 2026, NYSTA’s production in response to FOIL Request #R000082-032026 included USPS Certified Mail return receipt #7019 1640 0000 0800 4105 — addressed to Nicholas Paro, Town Supervisor, Town of Salina, 201 School Road, Liverpool NY 13088, signed for at Town Hall in approximately May 2025. The certified package transmitted the SEQRA Determination Letter (Negative Declaration) and the Full Environmental Assessment Form Part 3 for the project under NYSTA designation US-NY-2029.

That receipt places the Town of Salina in possession of — or as the lawful custodian of — records responsive to at least three categories in our March 20 filing: SEQRA documents, official correspondence with NYSTA, and proof of mailing.

17 minutes is not a search. It is a categorical assumption. Public Officers Law §89(3)(a) does not contain an explicit “diligent search” mandate, but the Committee on Open Government and New York case law consistently hold that a categorical denial issued without a records search is not a valid response — particularly when the agency is in possession of an obvious responsive record.

What We’re Doing About It

We have filed a follow-up FOIL with the Town of Salina today, addressed to Town Clerk Paula Primerano with current Supervisor Raul Huerta and Town Attorney Rodney-David Lowe on copy. The follow-up:

• Cites the USPS 7019 1640 0000 0800 4105 certified-mail tracking number as proof the Town is the custodian of responsive records.
• Corrects an inadvertent “I-81” reference in the original filing to the correct “I-90 (NYS Thruway) Exit 37” designation, eliminating any procedural ambiguity.
• Demands a sworn certification under POL §89(3)(a) that a diligent search has been performed across all reasonably accessible Town records — including digital archives, paper files, and any retained records from former Supervisor Paro’s tenure.
• Requests internal Town routing memoranda, emails, transmittal slips, meeting agenda items, and any reply correspondence sent by the Town to NYSTA, PTI, or any tenant carrier.

Framing

This is, for now, a procedural failure — not (yet) intentional concealment. The certified-mail package was received under former Supervisor Nicholas Paro’s administration, before current Supervisor Raul Huerta took office in January 2026. Mr. Huerta inherited this situation. He is being given every opportunity to direct his Clerk to correct the record. We continue to position the current administration as an ally rather than an adversary.

If the Town stonewalls a second time after being shown the certified-mail receipt — then the framing changes. For now: the no-records reply is demonstrably wrong, and the public record is the proof.

The Certified-Mail Green Card Is in the FOIL Response.

On May 8, 2026, NYSTA produced a USPS Certified Mail return receipt — #7019 1640 0000 0800 4105 — addressed to Nicholas Paro, Town Supervisor, Town of Salina, 201 School Road, Liverpool NY 13088. Mr. Paro signed for the package. Per the cover letter, this was the SEQRA Determination notification with the FEAF Part 3 evaluation attached, transmitted in approximately mid-2025.

Mr. Paro is the predecessor to current Town of Salina Supervisor Raul Huerta, who took office January 2026.

What This Changes — and What It Doesn’t

Our prior framing across the site was that the Town of Salina was “bypassed and never notified.” That framing requires a small but important correction:

• The Town was legally noticed under SEQRA, by certified mail, to the prior administration.
• The FOIL response contains no record of any response from the Town under that prior administration. No emails. No letters. No follow-up. No public hearing record.
• The failure to act on that notice happened upstream of Supervisor Huerta’s tenure.

Supervisor Huerta Remains an Ally

Supervisor Huerta inherited this situation. He has had no opportunity to act on a SEQRA notice that was processed (or ignored) under his predecessor. Our position is unchanged: the local officials currently in office — Huerta, Driscoll, and Thompson — had no jurisdiction over state land and remain political allies with us, not adversaries.

The accountability here flows to NYSTA (which approved itself as SEQRA Lead Agency on its own land lease) and to whoever inside the prior Salina administration received that certified mail and did nothing with it.

Where the Correction Has Been Applied

See the Corrections Log below for the formal before/after diff and full list of pages updated.

Today Was the Deadline. They Blew It.

April 22, 2026 was the absolute legal deadline for the New York State Thruway Authority to hand over the engineering blueprints, fall zone metrics, and financial lease agreements for the 184-foot monopole at Exit 37 / 474 Electronics Parkway (FOIL Request #R000082-032026).

They had 20 business days. They used every single one of them. And today, instead of producing the documents, NYSTA violated the Freedom of Information Law.

What They Did

NYSTA issued a boilerplate, bad-faith delay — not a single document produced. Instead, they promised a “status update” on May 20, 2026 — nearly two full months after our original request. They provided zero legal justification for continuing to withhold these records.

Under New York State Public Officers Law § 89(3)(a), a FOIL extension must be “reasonable and based on the circumstances of the request.” Kicking the can another month while a crane pours concrete on a tower you won’t explain is not reasonable. It is obstruction.

Why They’re Stalling — We Already Know

We already have the answer they’re trying to bury. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation responded to our FOIL in 7 days with a clear, unambiguous answer:

"A diligent search of the files maintained by DEC produced no responsive records."
— Region 7 FOIL Coordinator, NYS DEC, FOIL #W162712-032526, April 1, 2026

Zero SEQRA records. Zero environmental reviews. Zero wildlife consultations. The state’s own environmental agency has no records of a 184-foot tower being built near documented bald eagle roosts — and NYSTA is stalling because the moment they open their files, the world will see that they bypassed every environmental and safety review designed to protect this community.

What We Did Today — Our Counter-Attack

• 1. Triggered the 10-Day Legal Clock. We filed a formal Constructive Denial Appeal to the NYSTA Appeals Officer. Under Public Officers Law § 89(4)(a), NYSTA now has 10 business days to produce the requested documents in full or issue a written determination with specific legal grounds for denial. If they fail to do either, we proceed directly to an Article 78 proceeding in NYS Supreme Court to compel disclosure. The clock is running.
• 2. Called in the Watchdog. We filed a formal request for an Advisory Opinion from the NYS Committee on Open Government (COOG) — the state agency that exists to hold other state agencies accountable when they abuse FOIL. Our submission includes NYSTA’s original response, their illegal extension, the DEC’s “zero records” confirmation, and our 71-signature petition proving this is not an academic exercise — this is a highly controversial active construction site with massive community opposition, and NYSTA is weaponizing FOIL to run out the clock while they finish building.

The 10-Day Countdown

NYSTA’s appeal clock starts now. They have until approximately May 6, 2026 to comply. If they don’t, we file in Supreme Court. There is no third extension. There is no more stalling. The next step after this is a judge.

To Our 71 Signers

Your names were attached to every document we filed today. Your petition was cited in our COOG submission as evidence of the public interest at stake. You are not just signatures on a website — you are the reason this fight has legal standing, political weight, and teeth. Thank you.

What’s Next

• Keep sharing the petition. Every new signature strengthens our position when this reaches a courtroom.
• Stand by for a targeted phone-banking campaign directed at NYS Assembly Transportation Committee Chair William Magnarelli — the man with direct legislative oversight of the Thruway Authority. Scripts and numbers coming soon.
• Stay on high alert. Construction is ongoing. Document everything from public areas. Do not trespass.

They thought they could wait us out. They were wrong. The law is on our side, the clock is on our side, and 71 neighbors are on the record. This ends in a courtroom or it ends with them handing over the documents. Either way — it ends.

Your First Amendment Is Your Strongest Weapon — Don’t Give Them a Reason to Take It Away

We are winning. The DEC has confirmed zero environmental records. The Sheriff’s Office has confirmed no communication dead zones. NYSTA is stalling their FOIL response while a crane mounts commercial 5G antennas on a tower they claimed was for emergency services. The facts are on our side. The law is on our side. The public record is on our side.

That is exactly why we need to talk about discipline.

The people on the other side of this are not amateurs. They have attorneys. They have public relations teams. They have lobbyists. They have decades of experience making communities like ours look unreasonable, emotional, and easy to dismiss. They are watching what we say, how we say it, and where we say it — looking for a single sentence they can pull out of context and use to discredit everything we’ve built.

Do not give them that sentence.

What This Means in Practice

• Speak in facts. Every claim on this site is sourced, cited, and documented. When you talk to neighbors, officials, or press — do the same. “The DEC confirmed zero environmental records” hits harder than anger ever will.
• Standing policy reminder: This movement maintains a zero-tolerance position on threats, harassment, intimidation, trespassing, or any illegal activity. Always has. Review the Code of Conduct.
• Assume everything you say publicly will be read by their attorneys. Because it will be. Post on social media like a lawyer is screenshotting it — because they are. Say things you can defend in a courtroom.
• Exercise your First Amendment rights fully and without apology. Protest. Petition. Speak at public meetings. Contact your representatives. File FOIL requests. Write letters to the editor. These are your constitutional rights and no one — not NYSTA, not Phoenix Tower International — can take them from you. But they can use your own words against you if you hand them the ammunition.
• Let the record speak. We have the DEC’s own response. We have the Sheriff’s own words. We have their FOIL tracking numbers, their FCC filings, and their FAA determinations. The documentation is devastating — but only if we stay disciplined enough to let it do the talking.

They Want You Angry. Stay Sharp Instead.

Anger is natural. Anger is justified. But anger without discipline is a gift to the opposition. They are counting on someone in this community to say something stupid, do something reckless, or cross a line that lets them reframe this entire fight as a “neighborhood dispute” instead of what it actually is: a documented pattern of regulatory evasion, environmental negligence, and corporate abuse of public land.

We are not a neighborhood dispute. We are a legal challenge backed by federal wildlife law, state environmental law, and 70+ signatures from people who read every word before they signed.

Stay loud. Stay legal. Stay undeniable.

A new Individual Liability & Disclaimer section has been added to the Code of Conduct.

The section makes explicit what has always been our position: you are responsible for your own words and actions. ProtectLiverpoolNY.org does not automatically endorse, adopt, or assume liability for statements made by any individual supporter, signer, or community member outside of the content explicitly published on this website.

Signing the petition means you agree with the demands as written. It does not make you a spokesperson for this movement, and it does not make this movement responsible for your personal statements. If you speak publicly — and we encourage you to — speak for yourself, speak in facts, and own what you say.

All three legal pages have been reviewed and updated:

• Privacy Policy: Phone number added to the list of collected data (it was already being collected optionally but was not disclosed). Date updated.
• Terms of Service: Three new sections added — Limitation of Liability ("as is" / "as available" protection for volunteers), Individual Conduct & Statements (the site does not endorse individual supporters’ statements), and Modifications to Terms (continued use = acceptance). Date updated.
• About & Disclaimer: New Individual Liability section added, mirroring the Code of Conduct language. Date updated to April 2, 2026.

These updates ensure the legal infrastructure of this site matches the seriousness of the advocacy it supports. All changes are documented here and in the Claim Verification section below.

A new case study has been added to the Wildlife page documenting what happened in Mount Pleasant, SC in January 2023.

Workers removed a bald eagle nest from the top of a cell tower without a permit from U.S. Fish & Wildlife — a federal offense under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. The mayor called it “appalling.” Wildlife experts said the removal could disrupt breeding season.

This is not hypothetical. This is exactly the cycle we are warning about: tower goes up → eagles nest → telecom needs upgrades → nest gets destroyed. It has already happened in South Carolina. With 100+ bald eagles 1.25 miles from this tower at Onondaga Lake, there is every reason to believe it will happen here.

The section includes an embedded news report from WPDE ABC15 (video) and a link to the full story.

Watch the Report (YouTube)

A new section has been added to The Facts documenting the physical hazards of placing a 184-foot cell tower inside the I-90 Exit 37 highway infield — roughly 100 feet from the active off-ramp.

Topics covered:

• Ice Shedding: OSHA warns ice from communication towers travels 50–100 feet horizontally. The ramp is ~100 feet away. OSHA, TIA-222, and the Mackinac Bridge Authority are all cited.
• Tower Fires: Local fire departments cannot reach 184 feet. There is no mitigation plan for a tower fire over a highway ramp.
• The “Hinge Point” Myth: A hinge point does not control direction. If it falls South or Southwest, it hits the active I-90 ramp. 50/50 coin toss.
• The Jurisdiction Trap: Phoenix Tower International (Florida) partnered with NYSTA to invoke sovereign immunity and bypass all local zoning, safety inspections, and environmental review. We FOIL’d the Town of Salina — they possess zero records.

We are demanding the FHWA and NYS Public Service Commission produce independent engineering reviews.

What Changed

The formal petition demand letter has been updated today with the following refinements:

• Title simplified: "Official Petition Demand & Mandate for Abatement" is now "Official Petition Demand for Abatement." In legal terminology, citizens issue demands — courts issue mandates. The word "mandate" has been replaced with "demand" throughout the document to ensure proper legal standing.
• Wildlife terminology corrected: "Attractive nuisance" (a tort concept specific to children) has been replaced with "hazardous wildlife attractant" — the exact regulatory term used by the FAA and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. We are now using their own language against them.
• Emergency services rebuttal added: A new WHEREAS clause formally challenges the "emergency services improvement" justification, citing the Sheriff’s Office confirmation of no dead zones, the commercial nature of the equipment being installed, the DEC’s zero records, and the 16-month construction delay.
• NYSTA FOIL obstruction documented: A new WHEREAS clause formally enters NYSTA’s 20-business-day FOIL stalling tactic into the public record (FOIL Reference #R000082-032026), establishing their bad-faith evasion of accountability while construction proceeds.

Does This Affect Your Signature?

The core demands have not changed. We still demand an immediate halt to construction, complete removal of the structure, municipal and state legal action including an Article 78 proceeding, and federal congressional intervention. These refinements strengthen the legal precision of the document — they do not alter what we are asking for.

However, we believe in full transparency. If any of these changes cause you to reconsider your signature, email takeaction@protectliverpoolny.org and we will immediately and retroactively remove your name from the petition — no questions asked. We do not hold anyone to language they did not personally review and approve.

We encourage every signer to read the updated petition in full.

FOIL Response: NYS DEC Has No Records

On March 25, 2026, we filed a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Region 7, requesting any Environmental Assessment Forms (EAFs), SEQRA determinations, wildlife impact assessments, or correspondence related to the tower at 474 Electronics Parkway.

On April 1, 2026, the DEC responded:

"A diligent search of the files maintained by DEC produced no responsive records."
— Region 7 FOIL Coordinator, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, FOIL #W162712-032526, April 1, 2026

No EAFs. No SEQRA review. No wildlife consultation. No correspondence between the DEC and NYSTA or PTI. The state’s own environmental agency has zero records related to a 184-foot tower being built near documented bald eagle roosts at Onondaga Lake.

NYSTA FOIL Still Pending

A separate FOIL was filed with the New York State Thruway Authority requesting their SEQRA records, including any EAFs, Type II exemption classifications, or Negative Declarations they may have issued as lead agency. NYSTA has invoked the maximum 20-business-day extension. Their response is still pending.

The DEC responded in 7 days with a clear answer. NYSTA is taking 20.

Construction Resumes

As of this morning, a crane is on-site at 474 Electronics Parkway installing 5G panel antennas on the tower. Construction has resumed and is actively progressing — while the question of whether any environmental review was ever conducted by any agency remains unanswered.

To be clear: we are not claiming no environmental review was done. We are stating that the DEC has confirmed they have no records, and NYSTA has not yet responded. If an environmental review was conducted, no agency has produced it. Construction is proceeding regardless.

The Crane Itself

The crane currently on-site extends well over 200 feet to reach the top of a 184-foot tower. Under New York State Industrial Code Part 23-8, all crane operations are required to meet specific safety standards, including operator certification (NYS Certificate of Competence), documented inspections, stability requirements, and engineering safety plans. Additionally, transporting a crane of this size on local roads requires NYS DOT oversized vehicle permits and compliance with municipal road weight limits.

We are asking: has the crane contractor complied with NYS Industrial Code Part 23-8? Were the required DOT transport permits obtained? Were local road weight limits observed? These are straightforward compliance questions with verifiable answers.

Formal Notice Sent to NYSTA Deputy Counsel

An extremely stern letter was sent directly to Jennifer Andaloro, Deputy Counsel of the New York State Thruway Authority, formally challenging the 20-business-day extension on FOIL Request #R000082-032026.

The letter states, in part:

"We are fully aware of what this delay is. It is a transparent, bad-faith stall tactic to run out the clock while Phoenix Tower International (PTI) rushes to complete construction on a 184-foot commercial tower on your land at 474 Electronics Parkway."

The letter establishes the following on the record:

• The DEC has confirmed zero environmental records related to this site
• The Sheriff’s Office has confirmed no known communication dead zones in Salina
• The panels being mounted are commercial 5G equipment, not emergency service infrastructure
• A 200+ foot crane is actively installing equipment while NYSTA withholds public records

The letter cites New York State Public Officers Law § 89(3)(a), which requires that any FOIL extension be "reasonable and based on the circumstances of the request," and warns that deliberately withholding documents to protect a private telecom developer is not a reasonable circumstance.

NYSTA’s extended deadline is April 22, 2026. Any failure to produce the requested documents in full on that date will be treated as a constructive denial, triggering a formal administrative appeal and, if necessary, an Article 78 proceeding against the New York State Thruway Authority. A request for investigation by the NYS Authorities Budget Office (ABO) and the NYS Comptroller has also been put on the table.

New WHEREAS Clause Added

The formal petition demand letter has been updated with a new clause directly addressing and dismantling the "emergency services improvement" justification used to defend this tower.

The updated language establishes the following on the public record:

• The Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office has confirmed in writing that there are no known communication dead zones in the Salina area
• The equipment currently being installed is commercial 5G panel antennas — indicating this tower is not being built exclusively or even primarily for emergency service use
• The NYS DEC has confirmed zero records of any environmental review for this site
• The developer waited over sixteen months after receiving FAA clearance before breaking ground — a timeline wholly inconsistent with any claim of emergency need

If You Already Signed

Your signature still stands. The updated language strengthens the petition — it does not change the core demands. However, we encourage every signer to review the updated petition text in full.

If for any reason this new language changes your position, email takeaction@protectliverpoolny.org and we will remove your signature immediately. We do not hold anyone to language they did not agree to.

This is how we operate: transparently, on the record, and with respect for every person who put their name on this document.

The Claim

Senator Ryan (SD-50) stated that NYSTA approved an "occupancy permit" for this project "in accordance with its established permitting process" and that "the applicant, Phoenix Tower International (PTI), has indicated that the tower is intended to improve coverage for emergency service providers in the area." He did not verify this claim. He did not name which emergency service requested it. He directed the constituent back to NYSTA for details.

The Problem With That Claim

Emergency service providers — police, fire, EMS — do not communicate on commercial wireless networks. They use dedicated P25 digital radio systems operated on their own frequencies by the county. Onondaga County runs its own radio infrastructure for 911 dispatch and first responder communications. That is an entirely separate system from consumer cellular.

If this tower were truly being built for first responders, it would be FirstNet infrastructure — the federally authorized public safety broadband network that operates on a dedicated AT&T band (Band 14) with its own separate equipment. FirstNet is not a commercial cell tower. It is purpose-built for public safety.

This tower is not FirstNet. The equipment on site includes 5G panel antennas — the large rectangular MIMO arrays used exclusively for commercial consumer wireless broadband. Those are not P25 radios. Those are not emergency service equipment. That is commercial cellular infrastructure. So who is this tower actually for?

And consider this: if this tower were truly for county emergency services, wouldn’t the county pay for it? Wouldn’t the county be notified? Wouldn’t it go through local zoning? None of that happened. A private developer is building it on state land, bypassing the Town of Salina entirely — and the county’s own Sheriff’s Office has confirmed there are no known dead zones in the area.

The Senator’s Own Words

In the same response, Senator Ryan’s office wrote:

"As part of the approval process, the project must comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations, including any required environmental reviews."
— Senator Christopher Ryan (SD-50), written response, March 2026

This is a direct contradiction of how the project actually works.

The entire premise of this tower being built at 474 Electronics Parkway is that PTI is using NYSTA state land to claim state immunity from local jurisdiction. Under the Town of Salina’s local zoning laws, a commercial cell tower would require a Special Use Permit, review by the Planning Board, neighbor notification, setback requirements, and a public hearing. None of that happened — because PTI is operating on state land, where local zoning does not apply.

Senator Ryan is now on the record stating that this project "must comply with all applicable local laws." We are calling on Senator Ryan to enforce his own statement: if local laws apply, PTI must submit to the Town of Salina’s zoning and planning process before construction continues.

The 16-Month Delay

So let’s get this straight. This project is purported to be for "emergency service providers." The word "emergency" inherently implies urgency. If this tower is important enough to bypass local zoning, skip public hearings, and build on state land without notifying the community — it should be important enough to build without delay.

And yet: PTI received FAA clearance in November 2024 and FCC registration in February 2025. They then sat on those permits for so long that the FCC issued a formal "Construction Reminder" in February 2026. They recently broke ground, then halted operations.

Sixteen months. If this were truly urgent infrastructure for emergency service providers, why did the developer wait over a year to start building?

Loophole Kings Updated

New entries added documenting the "emergency services" claim and the 16-month permit delay.

We Checked

To verify PTI's claim, we contacted the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office directly and asked whether there were any known radio or communication dead zones in the Salina area. Thomas Newton, the Director of Community Relations and Public Information Officer for the Sheriff's Office, replied in writing:

"I have not been made aware of any 'dead' area in the Salina area."
— Thomas Newton, Director of Community Relations & PIO, Onondaga County Sheriff's Office, March 31, 2026

The Sheriff's Office — the agency responsible for law enforcement communications across the entire county — has no knowledge of a coverage crisis in this area. So if this is not an emergency, what is it?

If Not an Emergency, Then Who Decided This Was Needed?

PTI's language was "improve coverage for emergency service providers." Not respond to a crisis — "improve." That word choice matters, because it raises a set of questions that no one involved has answered:

• Who decides what needs to be "improved"? Which public safety agency identified a deficiency and requested enhanced coverage in this corridor?
• Were the actual officials responsible for public safety ever consulted? Was the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office contacted before this project was approved? Was Liverpool Fire? Was Moyers Corners FD? Or did NYSTA and PTI make this determination on their own?
• Why is the NYSTA making this decision at all? Since when does a highway toll authority determine what emergency infrastructure a residential neighborhood requires? This is a local matter — where is the Town of Salina? Where is the County?
• Where is the needs assessment? If this is a legitimate infrastructure project, where is the coverage gap study? Where is the engineering report?
• Why was a private, for-profit company selected? If this is public safety infrastructure, why is Blackrock-backed Phoenix Tower International building, owning, and leasing it for commercial profit? Why not the county? Why not FirstNet?
• Why was there no public process? Legitimate emergency infrastructure projects include community notification, environmental review, and interagency coordination. None of that happened here.
• Who profits? PTI leases antenna space to commercial wireless carriers. Every carrier that mounts equipment pays PTI rent. That revenue flows to PTI's investors — not to Salina, not to Onondaga County, not to emergency services.
• Why is the tower at this exact location? The Onondaga County Department of Emergency Management opened a new, multimillion-dollar Emergency Operations Center at 420 Electronics Parkway in early 2024 — directly adjacent to the tower site at 474 Electronics Parkway. Their own Citizen Preparedness page states this agency prepares for emergencies "natural or man-made" (source: onondaga.gov/em/citizen-preparedness). Excuse me? Their About page lists coordination with "the military" and "large corporations." The deeper we look, the deeper this goes. If this tower serves such a serious emergency management function, why is a private, for-profit developer building it? Why is the equipment on site commercial 5G panel antennas rather than emergency radio infrastructure? And what does this mean for the Flock AI surveillance cameras already deployed in this corridor?

"Improving" coverage is a commercial business decision. It does not justify bypassing zoning, skipping public hearings, and building on state land without notifying the community.

FOIL Filed with Onondaga County 911 Center

We filed a FOIL request with the Onondaga County Department of Emergency Communications for aggregate dropped call data in the Electronics Pkwy / I-90 Exit 37 corridor and any communications between 911 dispatch and PTI or NYSTA.

Direct Inquiries Sent to First Responders

We contacted Thomas Newton (Onondaga County Sheriff's Office), Liverpool Fire Chief Manley, and the Moyers Corners Fire Department — each asked directly about communication gaps in the corridor. We are documenting their responses. We do not oppose emergency infrastructure. We are asking whether anyone in public safety actually requested this.

Our updated petition — now carrying 61+ local resident signatures — was formally delivered demanding an environmental review and an immediate halt to the permitting process. Recipients: NYS Assemblymembers William Magnarelli and Pamela Hunter, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Representative John Mannion, NYS Senator Christopher Ryan, Onondaga County Legislator Jeremiah Thompson, Town of Salina Supervisor Raul Huerta, the FAA, the FCC, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Every entity named on this petition is now on the record.

The New York State Thruway Authority is deliberately stalling our FOIL request. NYSTA Deputy Counsel Jennifer Andaloro took 4 days to respond — only to demand an additional 20 business days to determine if they will even share the documents. They are operating in the dark and running out the clock on our community. We have publicly logged this delay and will file an appeal the moment their extended deadline expires.

NYSTA, Phoenix Tower International, and Big Telecom are weaponizing legal loopholes and hiding behind FCC federal overreach to strip our municipality of its zoning rights and environmental oversight. This is not a difference of opinion — it is a calculated effort to bypass every democratic safeguard designed to protect communities like ours.

This site is our living ledger. We are keeping a strict record of all correspondence, all FOIL responses, and all government actions — or inaction — related to this tower. Every entity and politician contacted today will have their response (or silence) documented here in perpetuity. The public record does not forget.

A new entry has been added to the NPC Takes page after a man in a red hatchback yelled at two peaceful protesters to worry about "more important shit." Our full response is published. We love trolls — they give us content.

The formal demand letter and all 46 petition signatures were delivered to Town of Salina Supervisor Raul Huerta, Onondaga County Legislator Jeremiah Thompson (District 4), and NYS Assemblymember Pamela Hunter (AD-128). As more people sign, the petition will be re-delivered in rounds depending on volume. The fight is now officially on the record.

The petition now demands the complete removal and dismantling of the tower — no compromises on height reductions or relocations. Added a preemptive legal counter citing the Matter of County of Monroe balancing test. Assemblymember William Magnarelli (Chair, NYS Assembly Transportation Committee) has been added to the addressee list. All representatives have been verified as currently serving and correctly assigned to the tower's location. If you signed before this change and no longer agree, email us and we will remove you.

Crews have been observed mounting equipment at the top of the pole and working rapidly. We believe NYSTA and Phoenix Tower International are trying to move quickly before legal or legislative intervention can take effect. Document everything you see from public areas. Do not trespass.

Our FOIL request to the New York State Thruway Authority for all SEQRA documents, environmental assessments, and USFWS consultations is being delayed. We suspect NYSTA may be using NYS DEC bypass mechanisms to avoid environmental review. We are pursuing this aggressively.

We published a formal Code of Conduct affirming our commitment to non-violence, democratic participation, and First Amendment advocacy. This movement wins through righteous anger channeled through legal and democratic processes — not through vandalism or threats.

We launched the NPC Takes page — a public response to critics who comment on our site without reading it. Every quote is sourced from public social media, every response is backed by timestamped evidence.

Every claim on this site has been independently audited, verified against peer-reviewed research, and corrected where necessary. 24 claims verified. 10 corrections documented below.

Town of Salina officials have been reframed as potential political allies with no jurisdiction over state land. A Major Update billboard was added to the homepage acknowledging the original framing error.

The full FAA "No Hazard" determination (Study No. 2024-AEA-11624-OE) and Syracuse Airport Director Jason Terreri's email confirming the airport was not consulted have been published on the Aviation & Safety page.