Questions surround cell tower proposal in Mahoning Township

Mahoning Township is still open to the idea of a new cellular tower on township land, though currently there are more questions than answers for the prospective deal.

During last month’s meeting, Mahoning’s supervisors discussed a business offer from King of Prussia based wireless network services company Velocitel, which entailed leasing township land for a cellular tower at a rate of $1,000 per month.

Currently, the township takes in about $2,700 each month from a lease agreement with Verizon for township land that is occupied by a cellular tower, which dates back to 2006.

Board members were curious if there was any room for discussion regarding Velocitel’s proposed rate, along with any potential conflicts of interest stemming from the lease with Verizon.

Secretary-Treasurer Natalie Haggerty sent a letter to Velocitel site acquisition specialist Samantha Perdick, requesting that she attend a township meeting to discuss the matter further.

At Wednesday’s meeting, Haggerty read a message from Perdick, who suggested that the supervisors send any questions to her in order to save on travel time and expenses.

Outside of questions for Velocitel, the biggest issue with the proposed deal lies with potential conflicts of interest with the Verizon agreement, as solicitor Thomas Nanovic pointed out.

Under the contract, lease opportunities on the township’s property in the vicinity of Verizon’s tower, or perhaps even beyond that, may have to go to Verizon first.

“I don’t know what it’s saying, to be honest with you. It says about right of first refusal, but it’s not clear to me whether or not this applies to this or not,” Nanovic said.

The “Right of First Refusal” section of the Verizon agreement dictates that if the township opts to sell or transfer its property for the purpose of operating a communications facility, Verizon has a “right of refusal to meet any bona fide offer of sale or transfer on the same terms and condition of such offer.”

Nanovic pointed out that under the section “Premises,” the lease agreement defines said premises as the 2,500-square-foot area that the cellular tower sits on, along with a right of way to access that area. However, the term “Property” — defined as “the entirety of lessor’s property” — is used in the “Right of Refusal” section, making it unclear as to whether or not that contract stipulation extends to all of the township’s property, or just the area occupied by the Verizon tower.

Essentially, Nanovic said, if the contract extends to all of the township’s property and the supervisors wanted to engage in a lease with Velocitel, Verizon would get the first opportunity to lease land for another tower.

The board members eventually decided on a few core questions to send to Perdick regarding the size and location of the area they want to lease, along with a minimum rental price that matches Verizon’s current payment.

“We’ve got to say, ‘Are you going to lease 50 (feet) by 50 (feet), where we want it be, and for this amount?’ And if they say no, we don’t even have to go to Verizon,” Supervisor Bruce Steigerwalt said.

If Velocitel’s offer is favorable, the township will reach out to Verizon to ensure that the deal complies with their agreement in order to move forward.