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City council approves Innovate Newport request to install DISH Wireless antenna array on Sheffield School roof
Summary
The council voted to allow Innovate Newport to install a DISH Wireless rooftop antenna array at the Sheffield School site under its lease, after neighborhood notifications and technical clarifications about placement, RF exposure and revenue use.
The Newport City Council on March 12 approved Innovate Newport’s request to install a DISH Wireless antenna array on the roof of Sheffield School, operating under Innovate Newport’s lease with the city.
Innovate Newport board member Joe Nicholson told the council the organization is the lessee of Sheffield School and asked the council for permission for an “exterior alteration of the premises” to host the DISH array. Nicholson said Innovate Newport plans to use lease revenue to fund building repairs, including water-related infrastructure and window replacement.
A DISH Wireless representative, Brian Sullivan, described engineering work that moved at least one antenna “back off of the Broadway side” and said the company can investigate whether other units can be moved farther from building edges. Sullivan said estimated radio-frequency exposure from the proposed installations is “well below the FCC limits” for public exposure; he told the council the modeled exposure at nearby public spaces is about 2.3% of the applicable maximum.
Councillors asked about the coverage radius and neighborhood impact. Sullivan said the site would provide roughly a half-mile coverage radius in a built environment and that site analysis is used to reduce visual impact. Nicholson said Innovate Newport informed neighbors before the hearing and that two of the rooftop stacks had already been moved 10 feet off the Broadway side.
Councilor Smith made a motion to approve the Innovate Newport request and the council voted in favor.
Nicholson said the revenue will be reinvested in the building and that the lease runs through 2032; he suggested that the improvements would leave the building in better condition if Innovate Newport were to vacate. Councilors asked staff to confirm any required city approvals for exterior alterations under the Innovate Newport lease and to document any follow-up permitting needed.
The council approved the Innovate Newport request; members asked staff to track permits and any required follow-up reports.
