Approval for a 140-foot telecommunications tower near Lake Willoughby remains in place after the Vermont Supreme Court on Tuesday formally closed residents’ legal challenge over its impact on the scenic landscape.
Tuesday’s notice certified the case back to the Public Utility Commission following an appeal by seven Westmore residents who said the commission did not give proper consideration to input from the town’s planning commission, select board, town plan or neighbors in approving the tower’s construction.
Industrial Tower and Wireless, based out of Massachusetts, filed a petition to construct the tower, proposed to be installed just northwest of Lake Willoughby, a national natural landmark, in June 2024. They were met with local concerns over how the tower would impact the scenery of Lake Willoughby and surrounding forest, despite the tower improving radio and cellular service in the Northeast Kingdom.
The three-member Public Utility Commission granted approval for the project in September 2025.
The group filed a notice of appeal to that decision the next month in the Vermont Supreme Court.
On Sept. 4, the state’s Supreme Court upheld the Public Utility Commission’s decision, and the group of residents rebutted on Sept. 16, filing a motion for the Court to hear the case again.
The motion for reargument was denied Sept. 29, the Newport Daily Express reported. Tuesday’s notice formally closed the Supreme Court case, leaving the tower’s approval in place.