Cellular Tower

SHARPSBURG - Antietam National Battlefield is one of the 10 most endangered battlefields in the United States, according to a list released Wednesday by the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT). The battlefield is "threatened with a 120-foot-tall cellular tower that would be visible from all of the battlefield's most famous vantage points," according to a CWPT press release. Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, Md., also is on the list, which also includes sites in several states from Virginia to Oklahoma.

Boonsboro considers cell tower By JULIE E. GREENE / Staff Writer BOONSBORO - The Town of Boonsboro could make hundreds of thousands of dollars and delay water rate increases if it allows a new cellular tower to be built and leases space on it, according to a builder. The town could make $29,383 a year with a 21- to 25-year lease and two customers, according to a handout from Fred J. Papa, executive vice president of Antietam Design Build Associates in Hagerstown.

The Hagerstown City Council on Tuesday approved a lease amendment with Shenandoah Personal Communications Co., also known as Shentel, to accommodate upgraded equipment at its cellular tower facility in Fairgrounds Park. The unanimous approval came during a special voting session at City Hall. Shentel plans to replace its existing flagpole-style tower with an increased capacity unit with a larger diameter but the same height as the existing police, according to the amendment. Scott Nicewarner, the city's director of Technology and Support Services, said a new base has to be constructed to accommodate the wider tower.

Hangar is proposed at regional airport A new 22,500-square-foot hangar has been proposed at Hagerstown Regional Airport, a county planning official said Monday. Senior Planner Lisa Kelly Pietro told the Washington County Planning Commission that the hangar would be on the east side of Henson Boulevard. The county would lease land to the developer for the hangar, she said. About five planes would use the hangar each day, Pietro said. The planning commission approved a site plan for the hangar, except for commission member Robert Ernst II, who abstained.

SHARPSBURG -- Antietam National Battlefield is one of the 10 most endangered battlefields in the United States, according to a list released Wednesday by the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT). The battlefield is "threatened with a 120-foot-tall cellular tower that would be visible from all of the battlefield's most famous vantage points," according to a CWPT press release. Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, Md., also is on the list, which also includes sites in several states from Virginia to Oklahoma.

A Virginia telecommunications company that has plans to build a 150-foot cellular tower in Hagerstown's West End is to seek approval from the City Council tonight to lease land from the city.Shenandoah Mobile Co., or Shentel, which is based in Edinburg, Va., would build the tower atop city-owned land at Hagerstown Business Park along Burhans Boulevard, according to a copy of the site agreement. Shentel would still have to go through other city administrative processes to build the tower, including site plan approvals and building permitting, city attorney William Nairn said Monday.

BLUE RIDGE SUMMIT, Pa. - Dale Dermott had just finished lunch when he checked his cell phone at the mountaintop diner. "I guarantee it doesn't work here," he said. Sure enough, the black phone displayed "searching for service. " His wife, Janet, watched him fiddle with the device and said, "We usually turn it off up here. " The Waynesboro, Pa., couple knew the Washington Township (Pa.) Supervisors last fall had opened the door to a cellular tower being erected. The zoning ordinance amendment that the supervisors accepted indicates the tower would be a conditional use on municipally owned land, meaning any request would have to go through a hearing and permitting process.

WILLIAMSPORT -- At first glance, U.S. Cellular's proposal to the town of Williamsport sounds like a no-brainer, the town's attorney said. The company would pay Williamsport $1,750 per month to attach cellular antennas to the town's existing water tower and avoid having to build a cellular tower in town. But, if town officials are not careful, the agreement could make it hard to turn down similar requests from other cellular companies or, worse, land the town in the middle of an expensive legal battle as competitors attempt to move in, town attorney Edward Kuczynski said.

The Hagerstown City Council on Tuesday approved a lease amendment with Shenandoah Personal Communications Co., also known as Shentel, to accommodate upgraded equipment at its cellular tower facility in Fairgrounds Park. The unanimous approval came during a special voting session at City Hall. Shentel plans to replace its existing flagpole-style tower with an increased capacity unit with a larger diameter but the same height as the existing police, according to the amendment. Scott Nicewarner, the city's director of Technology and Support Services, said a new base has to be constructed to accommodate the wider tower.

U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito Tuesday led a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new access road into the Tabler Station Business Park that's under construction in Berkeley County. The ceremony was held in the main terminal building at the Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport. It was the second of four planned stops on Capito's daylong itinerary in the Eastern Panhandle. The ribbon was cut for Technology Drive, a new primary access road to the east side of the park. It connects U.S. 11 to the recently completed Business Park Drive, formerly Tabler Station Road.

WILLIAMSPORT -- At first glance, U.S. Cellular's proposal to the town of Williamsport sounds like a no-brainer, the town's attorney said. The company would pay Williamsport $1,750 per month to attach cellular antennas to the town's existing water tower and avoid having to build a cellular tower in town. But, if town officials are not careful, the agreement could make it hard to turn down similar requests from other cellular companies or, worse, land the town in the middle of an expensive legal battle as competitors attempt to move in, town attorney Edward Kuczynski said.

SHARPSBURG - Antietam National Battlefield is one of the 10 most endangered battlefields in the United States, according to a list released Wednesday by the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT). The battlefield is "threatened with a 120-foot-tall cellular tower that would be visible from all of the battlefield's most famous vantage points," according to a CWPT press release. Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, Md., also is on the list, which also includes sites in several states from Virginia to Oklahoma.

SHARPSBURG -- Antietam National Battlefield is one of the 10 most endangered battlefields in the United States, according to a list released Wednesday by the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT). The battlefield is "threatened with a 120-foot-tall cellular tower that would be visible from all of the battlefield's most famous vantage points," according to a CWPT press release. Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, Md., also is on the list, which also includes sites in several states from Virginia to Oklahoma.

BLUE RIDGE SUMMIT, Pa. - Dale Dermott had just finished lunch when he checked his cell phone at the mountaintop diner. "I guarantee it doesn't work here," he said. Sure enough, the black phone displayed "searching for service. " His wife, Janet, watched him fiddle with the device and said, "We usually turn it off up here. " The Waynesboro, Pa., couple knew the Washington Township (Pa.) Supervisors last fall had opened the door to a cellular tower being erected. The zoning ordinance amendment that the supervisors accepted indicates the tower would be a conditional use on municipally owned land, meaning any request would have to go through a hearing and permitting process.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - A Boonsboro cell phone user says he has paid his bills and lodged complaints, but problems with his signal have not been corrected. Bill Robinson said Thursday that he had not had service for about three weeks. "So, right now, nobody can call me, and I can't call anyone from my office in Boonsboro," said Robinson, who uses the phone for business. The elimination of a cellular tower on state land has nixed the signal for customers in southern Washington County, Cellular One and Maryland Department of Natural Resources officials said.

Historic house may be demolished An historic house on Old National Pike near Boonsboro that dates back to the late 18th or early 19th century might be demolished. The Washington County Planning Commission on Monday night voted unanimously to recommend that the county issue a demolition permit to property owner Todd Easterday to raze the house at 6633 Old National Pike, east of Boonsboro. The demolition proposal has spurred opposition from the Washington County Historic District Commission, which voted on May 5 to recommend that the demolition permit be denied.

A Virginia telecommunications company that has plans to build a 150-foot cellular tower in Hagerstown's West End is to seek approval from the City Council tonight to lease land from the city.Shenandoah Mobile Co., or Shentel, which is based in Edinburg, Va., would build the tower atop city-owned land at Hagerstown Business Park along Burhans Boulevard, according to a copy of the site agreement. Shentel would still have to go through other city administrative processes to build the tower, including site plan approvals and building permitting, city attorney William Nairn said Monday.