Cell nodes and protecting public interests

A recent editorial discussing cell node towers caught my attention because it is such a timely issue affecting local governments at this very moment. We at Texarkana Texas City Hall have been working with a company who wants to place at least one of these towers inside the city limits of Texarkana, Texas. This request has, indeed, required a lot of work on the part of city staff as we move through the review process. However, I’d like to clarify that the issues we have been working through are more about protecting our residents’ interests in public rights-of-way than about any franchise fees or potential revenue that could be earned.

Up front, I will admit that the city will have to pass along a fee to the cell companies regarding the use of public right-of-way to locate these towers. The typical utilities that come to mind, such as electricity or gas, are either franchised if on public right-of-way or are located on private property. However, this new version of a cell tower creates a new category of utility that we’ve yet to encounter. And, since this request is new to Texarkana, we don’t currently have a fee in place for this type of use. Without some type of fee, taxpayers would be paying for the process of notifying affected residents within 200 feet, staff hours spent on the review process, and more. We’ll work on resolving this issue quickly to protect our residents from paying for costs that should, in fairness, be borne by the private businesses seeking to make a profit.

Mostly, our staff has dedicated time to reviewing the proposed location sites of these towers, some up to 120 feet in stature. Just for comparison, all of our street lights are currently 40 feet, so this will be quite the change to the normal landscape of our community. Our preliminary review process has included considerations of public safety, interference with emergency broadcast corridors, future city uses of the rights-of-way such as planned sidewalks or pedestrian/ bike pathways, and existing utilities. When one considers these structures being built in residential areas, near playgrounds or schools, and possibly behind your place of worship or favorite park, you begin to understand why we are treating these requests just as we do any other change to the landscape. We intend to process requests for these towers through our routine planning and zoning process, which will provide (and require) an opportunity for public comment and public hearing before both the Planning and Zoning Commission and the City Council. In our opinion, our residents must be heard when considering where companies want these towers located.

For the record, this is a national issue, not just a Texas issue. Earlier this year, the FCC requested comment on deployment of these cell towers ( WT Docket No. 16-421), and the FCC received comments nationwide, including comments from Texas cities and the Texas Municipal League.

We understand the need for better access to cell service, and certainly see the benefit these cell towers can provide to our residents. In this and other matters your city administration addresses daily, our responsibility is to ensure that the interests of the public are protected and that the quality of life here in Texarkana remains intact. John A. Whitson

City Manager City of Texarkana, Texas