A group of New Yorkers and several local lawmakers are seeking to increase regulation over the placement of cell phone towers and antennae in the five boroughs.

Yesterday, a coalition of concerned residents gathered at City Hall and said that cellular infrastructure could be creating health risks in the city’s densely populated residential neighborhoods. A Queens resident, Evie Hantzopolous, said yesterday, “We understand that cell phones are here, but the telecommunications industry is self-policing. There is no responsible policy in place to regulate where the towers are placed.”

Under current laws, a company that wants to erect a cellular antenna requires approval from the Department of Buildings only to get an alteration permit; they rarely are denied. The federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 prohibits health issues from being used as a reason to reject an application for a cellular antenna.

But yesterday Assemblyman Michael Gianaris, a Democrat representing Astoria, said he was pushing legislation in Albany that would ban antennae within 500 feet of schools, require public hearings over tower siting, require service providers to show proof of need for additional towers, and direct the state Department of Health to conduct a study on the long-term health effects of signals used by cell towers.