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St. Mary's commissioners approve 50-year lease for Valley Lee communications tower
Summary
The Board of County Commissioners authorized a 50-year lease with the State of Maryland to allow construction of a State communications tower at Cecil Park in Valley Lee; the county retained space for its 800 MHz system and the tower's fall zone lies entirely on county property.
The St. Mary's County Board of County Commissioners on Nov. 9 approved a lease with the State of Maryland to allow construction of a State communications tower on county property at Cecil Park in Valley Lee.
County Public Safety staff told commissioners the site is ready to move forward after surveys and soil sampling, and the tower’s 330-foot fall zone falls entirely inside county park property. The lease term approved by the board is 50 years with an automatic five-year renewal.
The action matters to public safety because the tower will host state communications equipment and has space reserved for the county’s 800 MHz radio system, allowing county and state systems to colocate at the site. “We are moving ahead steadily, however, not expeditiously as fast as we can on the site at Cecil Park in Valley Lee for the State of Maryland communications tower,” Public Safety staff member Dave Zylak said during the presentation.
Zylak told the board that, unlike the Bethune site, the Valley Lee tower location does not require agreements with neighboring landowners because the fall zone is wholly on county property. He said the State has completed surveys and soil samples and that county and the State technical committees have agreed on antenna placements.
Commissioners voted to authorize the county president to execute the lease agreement. The motion carried and the commissioners recorded their approval with an affirmative vote.
The board also discussed the Bethune tower, which has a contractor award but had not begun construction; staff said tower design must be submitted and permits issued before work begins. The lease generates no direct revenue to the county but secures capacity on the tower for the county’s radio equipment.
What happens next: staff will finalize and execute the lease and continue coordination with the State and regional communications committees on antenna placement and permitting.
