The 40ft aerial on Bede Road, in Barnard Castle, was put up last month to provide better 4G coverage in the town.
But residents near the mast have complained about its appearance and noticed poor television signals.
Churchill Road’s Gillian Coates, whose home looks out on the mast, said the first she knew of it was when it appeared.
She said: “I think it’s ugly basically. Now and again my TV goes off.
“It’s not wonderful to be honest – I feel it would have been nice if they let is know.”
Pam Brannen has lived in her home on Churchill Road since 1982.
She said: “I have a terrible urge to do a Banksy on it. I did not expect it to be as big as it is.
“I hope it’s securely fixed because if it gets knocked down it’s going straight through my roof.”
Durham County Council had initially recommended the mast for refusal in August 2016 – pointing to the “undue prominence” it would have on its surroundings and how it would harm the setting of a grade II listed milestone marker.
However, councillors on Barnard Castle Town Council planning committee backed the mast in September 2016 – agreeing to send a “strongly worded letter” to the county council to condemn its rejection. The decision was eventually overturned by the Planning Inspectorate after an appeal by communications firm Telefonica UK in March.
In a report, appointed inspector Graeme Robbie said: “I have given significant weight to the appellant’s evidence as to the need for, and public benefits of, the installation in this general location and the support for the proposal given by Barnard Castle Town Council.
“I have concluded that the proposal would not detract from the setting of the listed milestone marker.”
But one Bede Road resident, who did not wish to be named, branded the mast an eyesore. She said: “None of us on the road knew anything about it – we haven’t been able to get answers from anyone. Now there is nothing we can do about it. I cannot believe it – what must everyone who comes into Barney think?
“Surely it could have been put in a more secluded spot.”
The station, which also has three ground cabinets, benefits O2 and Vodafone customer connections.
A notice from developers on behalf of Telefonica said the site had been “carefully selected” to “minimise visual intrusion” for residents.
An alternative site for the mast on Newgate, near St Mary’s Church, was not chosen due to “tree clutter” affecting the signal and its siting in the middle of the town’s conservation area.
Meanwhile, television signals have been poor in some households near the new mast.
Avery Hill and Pamela May, both of Churchill Road, said their TVs had gone off a few times.
Ms Hill said: “I didn’t notice at first but it went off at lunchtime – it was quite a shock really.”
Bede Road’s Harry Ashmore has also noticed problems with his reception since the aerial has gone up. The at800 service for Freeview Television, which helps oversee the rollout of 4G, says interference from the 4G aerials can cause reception problems.
A spokesperson for at800 confirmed the firm has had 12 different interactions with Barnard Castle residents, sending out eight filters and making four engineer visits since July 1.
Of those four visits, one was a confirmed 4G interference case.
Ben Roome, CEO of at800, said: “We want to ensure that people know it’s our role to fix Freeview interference caused by 4G at 800 MHz, and that there’s no charge for our service. If you rely on Freeview for TV, we can arrange for one of our accredited engineers to visit homes to fix Freeview interference caused by 4G signals, free of charge.”
The firm added that viewers who have cable or satellite TV and also watch Freeview would be entitled to free filter and advice but not in-home engineer support.
For more information, help or advice, call at800 on 0808 13 13 800 free from landlines or mobiles.
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