Arcadia could see new cell tower off County A

An Arcadia park could be the new home for a Verizon Wireless cell tower, according to city council discussions last week.

Verizon approached city administrator Chadwick Hawkins about a year ago regarding possible locations for another tower within city limits and has recently presented a proposal for one in the parkland just off County Highway A in Arcadia.

No decisions were made by the council, which will get more information directly from a Verizon representative at one of its April meetings. Numerous council members spoke in favor of the preliminary idea of the tower at last Wednesday’s meeting.

“I think we all think it’s a fair idea, and we’ll have to make sure it’s feasible,” Mayor Robert Reichwein said.

A 25-year lease would be part of the agreement, and the city would be paid a growing amount of money throughout the lease — payments would begin at about $800 a month and increase by 10 percent every five years, according to council documents.

The idea could be related to Ashley for the Arts seeking another cell tower within city limits, Hawkins told the council, adding that he had never been to the park area and wasn’t sure if it would be a good location for a tower. 

Part of the process would see a city-approved access route off of North 3rd Street to the proposed location. A contracted tower company would “develop, construct, own and operate” the tower for Verizon, according to council documents.

The area is not currently used by the city. A final decision could be swayed by any conditions that were put on the area by the previous owner when it was acquired by the city years ago.

One hurdle for the city could be height restrictions, but the council didn’t seem worried on Wednesday.

A tower would be about 225 feet tall and enclosed by a fence in a 60 by 60-foot area. Verizon would pay for all of the construction and improvements necessary to create the tower.

Council member Kevin Mayzek asked about the city’s height restriction ordinance for new construction, and Hawkins said that while the city does have such restrictions, the city could issue an exception for the tower.

Hawkins didn’t believe that the city currently has any ordinances that police cell towers and said the proposal will be discussed further at future meetings.