Arlington Heights considers cellphone antennas on water tower

Arlington Heights officials are considering leasing a portion of a village-owned water tower to host cellphone antennae in exchange for revenue.

A potential deal could generate tens of thousands of dollars for village coffers and help pay for infrastructure and capital projects.

Officials plan to negotiate a multiyear agreement that would place at last one antenna on the water tower behind Fire Station No. 3 on Arlington Heights Road south of Golf Road. After village board members Monday signaled their openness to the plan, village staff members will start formally reaching out to cellular providers.

“We will be soliciting interest,” Village Manager Randy Recklaus said Tuesday. “We're one of the few communities in the area that doesn't do this and we want to explore it.”

Village staff members began looking into the possibility of a water tower lease last year by talking with a telecommunications consultant and completing a feasibility study.

Recklaus said the south-side water tower was chosen as an ideal site for a “pilot” program because it is near the Jane Addams Tollway and thus competitive versus other spots. It is also in a secure location behind the fire station, he said.

The water tower is wedged between office buildings and a Golf Road retail strip center. The nearest homes are to the south along Algonquin Road and east on Seegers Road.

One advantage to a lease deal, village officials say, is that it would allow the village to have a greater degree of control over the aesthetics of an antenna on village property than if it were on private property.

“We'll make sure the water tower won't be damaged in any way,” Recklaus said. “We'll make sure it won't be an eyesore. It will be handled appropriately.”

How many antennae and where exactly they would be placed on the water tower is subject to negotiations, he said.

So far, no one has contacted village hall to oppose antennae on the water tower, but Recklaus said, “Like any other issue, we'll listen to what the residents have to say.”

He said it was also too early to say exactly how much money could be gained through a lease deal.

But discussions with cellphone providers are expected to begin soon, with a potential agreement coming before the village board this spring.

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