Council, GIDA OK New Cell Tower Deal

At a joint meeting, board members of the Grove Industrial Development Authority and the Grove City Council voted unanimously to accept a proposal from Verizon Wireless to build a new cell tower in Grove near the water tower south of Grove Middle School.
Verizon is required to guarantee not less than three other cell phone providers, or pay the city the difference.

Verizon will build the tower to a height of 250-270 feet able to withstand winds of 90 mph; connect a T-1 line to the tower; equip and build cabinets and shelter buildings; handle environmental, OSHA, bonds and insurance requirements; hold general liability insurance; and complete within 90 days from Notice to Proceed isuance by the city.

The city will pay about $17,000 to remove the old tower, relocate city equipment to the new tower, and install new co-axial cables and associated equipment.
Verizon will pay the city about $86,000 the first year and $40,000 per year thereafter based on antenna rental income.

City officials said Tuesday that Sprint had committed to locating equipment on the new tower.
A total of four carriers may use the tower, plus a wi-fi transmitter located at the 140-foot level.
Also submitting bids were Smith Two-Way Radio of Ft. Smith, and Precision Communications of Grove. Smith would provide the city with $14,400 in revenue while Precision would provide $5,200 and the city would be responsible for getting additional tower users.
The Verizon deal clearly hinges on their willingness to guarantee the city revenue from three competitive cell companies even if the companies choose not to locate on the tower.

The other item on the agenda Monday was discussion or action regarding approval for GIDA to borrow up to $750,000 to create and install a high-speed wireless internet network (WiFi) throughout the city.

This item was tabled until May 16. Bank of Oklahoma and Government Capital Corporation of Oklahoma City submitted bids.
The backbone of this system will be used by GMSA for an automated meter reading system, saving the city $100,000 in meter reader personnel, City Manager Bill Galletly said. The loan would have a five-year payback and the typical user would pay $24.95 a month for the broadband service. It could be up and running within 120 days.

Wireless users now pay $49.00 a month, where available, and up to $79 a month for satellite broadband service, plus a hefty $350 install fee.

As usual, the naysayers were present. One stated that Wi-Max was the latest gizmo, while another person said that this technology was 5-7 years away. Not true, WiMax is already here, according to industry sources.

Another said “Verizon does not like to share its towers,” while a city official said Sprint has already given a verbal OK to go on the tower.
One council member clearly was confused as to what was being discussed, wi-fi or the cell tower.

After the meeting, Merl Tinney, former owner of Green Country Internet, said he was interested in submitting a proposal for wi-fi. He has filed a lawsuit against Jetstream Wireless, LLC of Phoenix, for alleged failure to pay him for the system they purchased from him last year. Green Country provides wireless internet service to a limited area at present.
The city’s system would cover Grove as well as nearby areas such as Monkey Island, making the subscriber potential around 12,000 homes, said Galletly.
Grove also has “hotspots” where wi-fi is available in a couple of downtown restaurants.

It was pointed out that large companies such as AT&T and cable systems are fighting city-owned systems and in at least 20 states they have pressured legislatures to prohibit cities from establishing their own networks. But AT&T has shown no interest in expanding its DSL lines into areas beyond a 3-mile range of downtown. Cox Cable has said it will wait until utilities are re-located from Sailboat Bridge to downtown before installing high speed service.