Staff Report

MEMORANDUM

To: City Council

From: David J. Deutsch, City Manager

Subject: Clear Wireless LLC Communication Equipment at Allen Pond Park - R-15-10

Date: March 8, 2010

Clear Wireless LLC has approached the City about co-locating communication equipment on the existing monopole owned by T-Mobile at Allen Pond Park. The monopole and a small fenced area are located adjacent to the Huston Soccer Field located off of Mitchellville Road near the City’s Parks and Grounds Facility.

Clear Wireless LLC will enter into two agreements on this site. One agreement will be with T-Mobile to co-locate cellular equipment on the existing monopole at this site. The City has received notice from T-Mobile that they will enter into a sublease with Clear Wireless LLC concerning the co-location of this equipment on their monopole (see Attachment 1).

The second agreement required by ClearWireless LLC will be with the City of Bowie to enable them to locate communication equipment on the ground at the base of the monopole and adjacent to the existing fence on site. Attachment 2 shows a diagram of what is proposed by Clear Wireless LLC.

The basic terms of the agreement are as follows:

Term of the lease is for five years, with two additional five year extensions and a third renewal term of a period equal to the time remaining on the underlying T-Mobile lease.
Rent is $17,000 per year paid in annual installments and will commence upon execution of this agreement by the City.
Rent will increase at the rate of 3% per year
City will receive a one-time $1,500 signing bonus

This is the second lease the City has entered into involving an additional carrier being added to a structure owned and constructed by another entity. As noted above, Clear Wireless LLC must enter into two leases on this project. The City’s lease is for the ground use only and is not for the use of the monopole that is owned by T-Mobile. While the average lease for the existing City water tower leases is approximately $35,000 per year, this entails lease payments for both the tower and the ground lease. That is not the case with this lease. Staff feels that the $17,000 negotiated rent is a fair rent to charge for a ground lease rent only since Clear Wireless LLC is also required to pay a comparable amount to T-Mobile for use of the monopole.

Also, when the City negotiates a lease with a company constructing a monopole, we include language that allows the City to charge ground rent for any subsequent carrier that co-locates on the monopole. There is a possibility for one additional carrier to co-locate on the monopole at Allen Pond Park, which would generate additional revenue to the City along the lines of what is being charged above. The City also has a monopole located at Black Sox Park that also has the potential to add one additional carrier. A nice aspect of this arrangement is that the City benefits by additional carriers co-locating on the monopoles, without the adverse impacts of having to construct another monopole.

There are FCC standards that govern the safety of communication equipment. The proximity to communication antennas is what primarily governs whether someone is at risk. Generally, you need to be located within three feet of the antennas to be at risk. Since the antennas will be located more than 100 feet in the air, this does not present a problem for people on the ground in close proximity to the monopole.

Prior to the monopole being installed on this site, the City sent out a mailing to approximately 262 residents that lived within 500 feet of Allen Pond Park inviting them to an informational meeting about this matter. City staff and representatives from T-Mobile attended this meeting. This meeting was held on November 29, 2006. Two people, both members of the Community Recreation Committee (CRC), attended this meeting. No residents in the vicinity of this monopole attended the meeting. Staff has received no complaints or inquires about the location of the monopole or the related equipment at this site since the monopole was installed in 2007.

The CRC at their meeting on March 3, 2010 reviewed the proposal of Clear Wireless LLC to install communication equipment at this site. They raised no objections to this proposed action.

Staff Recommendation

Because of the reasons put forth in this memorandum, staff recommends that Council approve Resolution R-15-10 authorizing the City Manager to enter into a lease agreement with Clear Wireless LLC as outlined in this memorandum to install communication equipment on the ground adjacent to the existing monopole at Allen Pond Park.

DJD/JLF/adf

Attachment - Resolution R-15-10