ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: Vertical Bridge exec issues statement on local committee’s proposal for Lee County Commissioners to vote on cell tower to only include tower, not site
Several hours after deadline on Thursday, March 2, Vertical Bridge Vice President of Development Steve Gosnell wrote to the Boca Beacon in response to the article below. See his statement at the end of the story.
According to the agenda published by Lee County government two days ago, Lee County commissioners were supposed to gather for their regular monthly meeting to discuss many items, including the Gasparilla Island cell phone tower and surrounding site. The agenda describes the item as a decision to be made to allow the new tower’s construction, as it has to be approved by county commissioners because of the Gasparilla Island Conservation District Act. The GICDA specifically addresses any buildings or structures over 38 feet, which are not allowed on the island.
However, the Community Cell Tower Committee, which is the island’s group of community leaders and emergency officials overseeing the new cell tower project, said they have asked that the description of the agenda item be changed due to a few miscommunications, primarily due to the historic nature of the buildings around the site. The committee was surprised to see this item on the agenda, as they hadn’t even had time to get a good look at its contents.
Staff recommended that the Board approve the item to “maintain consistent, reliable telecommunication services for residents of Boca Grande,” which makes sense. It had also already been signed off on by Community Development Director Dave Loveland, Anne Henkel of Budget Services, Peter Winton of Budget Services, County Attorney Michael Jacob and Marc Mora from the County Manager’s office.
But there were still a few questions from island committee members that had not been answered at the time they last met with Vertical Bridge (the cell tower company) … questions that were supposed to have been answered prior to final submittal of a plan to the county.
On Thursday a committee representative spoke with County Commissioner Brian Hamman to determine if the topic could be streamlined to include just the cell tower itself, not the site plan, until more clarification was given. Lee County Staff agreed to that change.
We are unsure how the plans presented here will change. It is likely they will.
The Commissioners’ meeting begins at 9:30 a.m. and will be broadcast live at leegov.com/resources/leetv. If you wish to attend in person it will be held at 2120 Main Street in Fort Myers.
A recap of what we know so far
What we have learned so far in the process of rebuilding our island telecommunications infrastructure is this:
• Replacing our old self-support lattice tower, which was approximately 160 feet tall, with a monopole structure is less intrusive to the surrounding buildings and is more aesthetically pleasing. It requires less support platform space but does require more grounding, for obvious reasons.
• We were already struggling with cell service on a good portion of the island, particularly at the north end. This is, in part, due to the fact we are more rural than most of coastal Florida and on the mainland we have less cell tower coverage. You can expect those problems to resume when the main tower on the island (in the center of the village) is replaced and the COWs (Cell On Wheels) – including the one on the north end – literally come home.
• 5G service still requires larger cell phone towers for optimal operation. The small 5G towers only operate through the use of a big tower, so we would still need one.
Restoring Cell Coverage is our Number One Priority
by Steven Gosnell, VP of Development of Vertical Bridge
When Hurricane Ian made its destructive path across SW Florida, one of its many casualties was the toppling of our communication tower located in Boca Grande, the main provider of wireless cell phone coverage for all of Gasparilla Island. And while temporary infrastructure facilities have been erected and utilized, this temporary service has not been able to provide consistent and reliable cell phone coverage – placing lives and public safety at risk.
As the VP of Development for Vertical Bridge, the company responsible for rebuilding the communications tower, I assure the Boca Grande community that public safety is our number one priority. We are working as quickly as possible to rebuild the tower and restore reliable and consistent cell service.
Recently, I had the privilege of meeting with representatives of the Boca Grande community to address questions and concerns regarding various aspects of the tower rebuild. There is clear consensus on the need to restore service without delay. Additionally, representatives of local Fire and Police services stressed the need for improved emergency services communications on the island. Vertical Bridge reconfirmed our willingness to allow emergency equipment to be located on the tower at no cost to taxpayers.
Vertical Bridge has submitted all necessary application to Lee County to secure needed permits required to rebuild the tower. We expect to receive final approval in the coming days, and then we can immediately more forward with rebuilding the tower with a goal of tower completion and carrier antenna installation by mid-summer. Every effort will be taken to minimize delays and overall impact to the community, and we are very thankful and appreciative for the community’s shared concern for these common goals.
Some members of the community have inquired about aesthetic enhancements that may be considered. As a good neighbor, our firm is open to input concerning buffering, landscaping and other improvements to the look and feel of the infrastructure and surrounding footprint. In fact, the new tower design alone will reduce and improve our visual footprint by replacing the old, legacy 3-legged structure with a clean, single base monopole.
We have received some questions on whether the tower could be moved from the historic district to another location on the island. While we fully understand the desire to remove non-historic infrastructure from the historic district, moving the tower location would greatly extend the time period required to erect a tower and restore service, and would not allow us to rebuild to nearly the current height – further jeopardizing the delivery of consistent and reliable cell service and continuing to place public safety at risk. Moving the tower is simply incompatible with the prioritization of public safety and getting service back up and running as quickly as possible.
I sincerely thank the Boca Grande community for your patience during this difficult time. The members of our team fully recognize that the loss of wireless cell phone coverage on the island has been a tremendous burden to daily life and emergency service efforts, and that the temporary infrastructure facilities, while offering some relief, are not long-term solutions. Vertical Bridge will continue doing everything possible to quickly restore reliable and consistent cell service.
Thank you for the privilege to serve the residents of Boca Grande and Gasparilla Island.
