Cell tower possible in park woods
Published 5:00 am Saturday, October 19, 2002
Interested in making a little extra money without the help of taxpayers, South Whidbey parks commissioners are considering renting out space to a cellular telephone company.
On Wednesday night, commissioners representing the South Whidbey Parks and Recreation District discussed the possibility of allowing the construction of a cellular telephone transmission tower in South Whidbey Community Park.
Under consideration by parks staff and by commissioners for a few weeks, the proposal would put a tower measuring up to 150 feet in height in the middle of 40 acres of woodland purchased by the district in 2000. In exchange, the district would earn at least $12,000 a year in rental fees.
Gregg Yeoman, a spokesman for T-Mobile cellular, said Wednesday that his company needs to build a tower near that location to provide seamless phone service through the Highway 525 corridor. The company, which recently completed construction on a 150-foot tower near Kens Korner, originally tried to negotiate a site on the South Whidbey High School campus. The company’s offer was rejected.
Yeoman said T-Mobile tower planners are extremely motivated to work with the parks district on securing a site for the tower.
“This is a very hot site for them now,” he said.
Yeoman said the company could keep its tower site to a minimum size, meaning it would take up about 500 square feet of ground space. The company’s towers often require 10,000 square feet. He also said T-Mobile would give up the right to negotiate with other cellular companies for space rental when those companies — such as AT&T and Verizon Wireless — come calling to mount their antennae on the tower. That negotiating power would go to the parks district.
Proposing to pay the district $1,000 a month in rental fees and promising to place the tower in a dense area of trees, Yeoman caught the interest of at least one commissioner. Parks board member Tara Barlean said she would be interested to see a revised draft of a lease agreement between the district and T-Mobile at the board’s Nov. 13 meeting.
Yeoman said T-Mobile plans to continue building cellular facilities along highways 525 and 20 until it has complete coverage.
