Cell service providers eye move to Hovland and Grand Portage

Recently the county received requests from two potential cell service providers who would like to co-locate on Cook County owned towers in Hovland and Grand Portage.

Rena Rogers, head of the county’s IT department, and Rowan Watkins who works with the cell towers and radios for the county came before the county board on November 22 with an update about the joint request.

Watkins said Verizon and T-Mobile have inquired about subleasing space on the towers. There are a lot of legal and regulatory hoops to jump through before the county can say yes to the requests, said Watkins and the county would have to make some improvements on the Grand Portage tower so new equipment could work there, he added, as well as secure right of access.

If an agreement is reached and the two companies can locate their gear on the towers the east end of Cook County would receive far better cell phone coverage, said Watkins. The CAD system (computer aided dispatch) used by Cook County Law Enforcement, and increasing Fire/EMS agencies is cell service dependent and would also work better in these areas if those upgrades were made, added Watkins.

Then too there is the financial benefit to the county. Watkins said revenues for the leases would generate $50,000 to $75,000 annually.

Another benefit, said Rogers, is that every 11 years the county tries to have a structural analysis performed on the towers. The cost of a structural analysis is in the thousands of dollars per site. Regardless if this agreement goes through, that analysis has already been taken care of by the cell service companies at both locations.

If all of the necessary work can get done and there is no hitch in the four agreements (two agreements per tower), Watkins said work could begin next fall, but he added, “To have all of that done before next fall is pretty generous.”

East End Commissioner Frank Moe expressed his gratitude to the county staff working on this project. He said the improvements would result in improved public safety and the quality of life for residents living on that end of the county.