Yuma Green to the rescue
‘Sky Blue’ Sperryville monopole slated for repainting
What’s the difference between Sky Blue and Yuma Green?
When you’re talking about Sperryville’s towering telecommunications monopole erected in 2019, a huge difference.
For anybody whose recollection needs refreshing, more than one jaw was agape in Rappahannock County last year when the already controversial cell tower installed on scenic Woodward Road turned out to be a shiny light blue like one might find erected on a Caribbean island to match the sea and sky — certainly not the wilderness backdrop of adjacent Shenandoah National Park.
“A very sky white” is how Piedmont District Supervisor described the odd shade of color last April after receiving numerous complaints from her constituents. Some demanded it be repainted to conform more appropriately to Rappahannock County’s lush landscape.
Originally the county agreed to paint the tower “Sky Blue” to appease its closest neighbors whose view of the monopole is looking east — into the
sky, in the words. But for the majority of residents the tall bluish spire is juxtapositioned, and awfully so, against Shenandoah’s unique shades of greens and browns, depending on the season.
After much back and forth, and despite the public outcry, it appeared last May that no formal action would be taken by the county to alter the color, with more than one supervisor voicing the opinion that the vivid shade would “fade” with time.
Not to mention there would be a hefty price tag to repaint the structure.
Arlington-based Community Wireless Structures, which erected the monopole to support a public safety paging system and equipment for internet and cell service providers, sought three bids were the county to repaint the tower, the lowest $25,555 (this after CWS, at the request of the county, had just paid $12,000 to have the tower painted Sky Blue in the factory).
Supervisor Smith wasn’t pleased. In fact, it wasn’t too long ago that she suggested no new cell towers be approved in scenic Rappahannock County until the Sperryville monopole was repainted to better blend in with the natural surroundings.
That said, at its first meeting of 2020 last month the BOS voted unanimously to allocate $20,000 from the county’s contingency fund to repaint the monopole.
And this week Rappahannock County Administrator Garrey Curry showed up at the monthly meeting of the BOS with a U.S. Bureau of Land Management paint color palette “used specifically for camouflage,” as he described it.
“The BLM representative who I spoke to, who came recommended by the National Park Service, recommended the color Yuma Green, which is actually a deep brown color, for the Sperryville tower,” Curry informed the supervisors.
He added that Shenandoah National Park would also like to see the monopole repainted a brown.
“I’ve provided CWS with a copy of that and they’re working with their paint vendor, Sherwin Williams, to confirm they can paint-match that,” added Curry, who spoke of a “Marchish” timeframe to get the new paint applied, taking into account proper adherence temperatures.
Better yet, Curry told the Rappahannock News this week that an earlier low estimate to repaint the tower has decreased further.
“I expect it to be less than was authorized by the BOS,” he revealed.
In the meantime, Curry said, CWS is working on a “short agreement” with the county to transform the monopole from Sky Blue to Yuma Green, granted of course the paint vendor can match the color.