Meet Ohio's 'Frankenpines'

Efforts to turn two looming cell towers in Toledo, Ohio, into faux pine trees to help them blend in with their surroundings are getting mixed reviews from residents, reports the AP. Some residents in Springfield Township have derisively dubbed the towers "frankenpines," the Toledo Blade reports. Adding branches to the towers in the Toledo suburb wasn't purely an aesthetic decision. It's a zoning requirement for cell towers erected in Springfield Township residential districts.

Springfield Township zoning officer Jacob Barnes says "the township is happy with how it turned out," and told the Blade that he expects "the residents are as well." A resident of a nearby subdivision who opposed construction of the 120-foot structure from the start says he remains concerned about potential health risks from living near a cell tower. Another resident says he's just happy to have better cellphone service, and "I like how they disguised it. ... My wife drives by it all the time and she didn’t even notice it." (More strange stuff stories.)