A 16-METRE mast for 5G is now planned near the centre of Dreghorn after a smaller sized pole in Castlepark was once again refused.

An application to place the telecommunications apparatus including the 16m monopole with wrapround cabinet at base, south of Dreghorn Library on the Main Street was validated last week.

A second bid to place a smaller 15m one in Castlepark Circle was refused – along with others in Stevenston [15m] and Dalry [18m], while and application for a 20 metre high mast was withdrawn in Saltcoats.

However plans to place a 18m mast at Littlestane Road was approved with a similar sized mast North West of Kilwinning’s Duddingston Avenue were approved with no conditions.

In the Castlepark refusal, planners stated: “The proposed mast would be 15m. This is higher than the neighbouring trees (approx. 14m) and the nearby streetlights (approx. 8m). It is also higher than all of the neighbouring buildings which do not exceed two storeys in height.

“The excessive scale of the proposed mast would result in it having a significant, and potentially detrimental impact on the character and visual appearance of the surrounding area.

“They have claimed that the mast cannot be reduced further in height.”

A CK Hutchison Networks (UK) Ltd (Three) network said: “We want to offer the community a reliable network experience and this site will be critical to making that happen. Masts needs to be situated where people will be using the service and, in precise locations to ensure the widest breadth of coverage.

“We carry out extensive searches and surveys to evaluate all the options. We then choose the option most likely to gain planning approval from the local council. This will include showing we have minimised the impact on residents and the locality.”

5G is the next generation of wireless mobile connections, following on from the 4G networks currently used by smartphones across the globe.

As the name suggests, this is the fifth generation of the network technology.

There is no official speed standard for 5G, but many experts expect it to be 10 times faster than 4G – and therefore potentially faster than most home fibre broadband.