The finance committee voted Nov. 10 to recommend moving forward with a negotiated amendment to a cell tower lease at 202 East Staunton Road, staff said.

Christie, the presenting staff member, described the proposal as a negotiated extension requested by the current lessee for the tower located west of the water treatment plant. Staff said the original lease was entered on 07/20/2024 and that the agreement includes five-year terms with optional extensions that must be mutually agreed. Christie said the law director advised that negotiating an extension is permissible rather than re-bidding the site, and that equipment on the tower belongs to the company rather than the town.

Staff described proposed payment changes that would take effect Dec. 1, including a stair-step increase in annual payments and an immediate up-front payment of $10,000 from the lessee at signing. "The company would make an immediate $10,000 increase payment, upfront," Christie said. Staff also said the company is willing to retroactively pay back to Dec. 1 if execution of the agreement extends beyond Nov. 30.

Committee members asked about insurance and whether current lease terms would remain in effect until a new lease is executed; staff replied insurance coverage would continue and that the company would retroactively reconcile payments once the contract is effective. Mr. Schilling moved to proceed with the recommendation; the chair said the committee recorded a unanimous recommendation to move forward with the extension and the stair-step increase in cost.

Why it matters: the amendment would increase recurring revenue to general revenues and preserve the existing tower infrastructure rather than triggering removal and re-bidding of the site.

Next steps: staff will draft the formal amendment language and present legislation to the full council; staff said the town is not requesting emergency legislation and the company indicated willingness to make retroactive payments if needed.