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Board hears proposal for option and lease with tower company; conditional use permit, balloon and propagation studies still required
Summary
The board opened and closed a public hearing on an option/lease agreement with a tower company for a site behind the county refuse center; the lease would begin a due‑diligence period but a conditional use permit, propagation study and public hearings are still required before a tower can be built.
New Kent County staff presented a proposed option and lease agreement on Sept. 8 that would allow Towers LLC to pursue due diligence and, if successful, lease a roughly 10,000‑square‑foot site behind the county refuse and recycling center on Old Telegraph Road for a communications tower. County staff and the applicant stressed the lease authorizes a due‑diligence and option period and does not itself approve tower construction.
County attorney staff said the agreement pairs an option (which pays a $2,500 fee to start due diligence) with a lease that would be $6,500 per year once the option period ends and the lease begins. The lease requires the tower company to reserve one ten‑foot antenna space for county use (for example, the sheriff’s department). Additional carriers would pay modest monthly fees.
Staff and the applicant said construction cannot proceed until the applicant secures a conditional use permit (CUP). The CUP process will include a propagation study showing the coverage area and a balloon study demonstrating tower visibility from surrounding locations; those studies and renderings will be presented at a later public hearing where residents can comment on the tower design and visibility.
Board members asked whether propagation studies account for nearby towers and how overlapping coverage can create dead zones; staff said the propagation study will address existing towers and coverage. The board closed the public hearing and deferred final action on the option/lease for follow‑up and additional questions to be addressed at a future work session.
Ending: The board did not vote on the lease on Sept. 8; staff said they expect to return with additional information and CUP materials and that residents will have at least one more public hearing before any tower is constructed.
