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Commissioners sign tower lease for Liberty Hill; county plans system tests before January go-live

5913637 ยท August 12, 2025

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Summary

The board reviewed and signed a lease with the City of Gardner for the Liberty Hill tower site as part of a three-tower public safety radio upgrade; staff said field testing and radio checks are planned before a January 2026 operational target and final certification expected several weeks after testing.

The Saginaw County Board of Commissioners reviewed and signed a tower lease agreement with the City of Gardner for the Liberty Hill site, a step county staff said moves the three-tower radio upgrade closer to completion.

County staff and communications contractors reviewed the agreement with local public-safety users ahead of the vote. Officials said the three towers will complete the planned radio coverage for first responders once equipment is installed. Staff explained that some sites are partially complete visually but have no equipment mounted yet.

County and contractor representatives described a multi-week field-testing program built into the project schedule. The contract includes two to three weeks of on-the-ground testing in which county personnel and contractor staff will exercise portable and mobile radios to locate dead spots; that testing is intended to confirm or improve coverage maps. Staff said the project aims to perform final system tests before going live in January 2026 and that final operational certification may follow four to six weeks after testing.

Commissioners approved the lease by motion and asked staff to provide coverage maps to municipalities and to share results from the field testing after completion. Staff said the county has already purchased and stored equipment for the sites in a climate-controlled facility and has locked contract prices for ordered steel components.

Ending: The lease vote moves the county closer to a system-wide upgrade; commissioners requested testing results and a final project budget summary in the coming weeks.