Verizon considers divesting tower assets
Last year we reported on Crown Castle’s huge deal with AT&T; the tower giant bought almost 10,000 towers for $4.85B. Apparently this was food for thought for Verizon Communications’ CFO Fran Shammo. He’s gone on record saying AT&T’s move was inspiring, and now Verizon would be open to divesting its cell tower assets in a similar manner. Not only did AT&T get that huge chunk of change, it also  preserved its right to lease and operate the towers for 28 years.
At first these may seem like press release musings, but apparently the subtle hints could spark a company CFO bromance with Crown Castle. CFO Jay Brown has now stated that his company might be interested in buying Verizon’s towers. With these two seemingly so ready to do business, don’t be surprised if this deal gets inked or at least enters the negotiation stages by the end of the year.
Tower fire in OR
Late last week a cell tower in Thurston, Oregon, caught fire. The frightening thing is this tower’s proximity to Thurston High School. Fortunately the fire took place on a Saturday afternoon, so very few people were in the area. Local firefighters got the fire under control and cleared the scene in only 45 minutes. There are no details as to the cause of the fire. No one was hurt, and the only thing other than the tower to sustain damage was a few singed shrubs near the athletic field. Classes were not affected by fire either.
Tower theft charges pile up
What’s worse than being accused of stealing cell tower batteries in two different cities in Mississippi? Being accused and then caught for a third city’s cell tower battery theft. There’s surveillance footage of a man being caught in the act in Jackson. The other two cities in question are Clinton and Vicksburg. The batteries are valued at $600 each, and he’s been accused of stealing 12, which brings his grand total to a $7,200 loss for the city of Jackson alone. He faces grand larceny charges in all three cities.
Ready for the big kicker of this story? The man accused is a former AT&T employee! Disgruntled employee? Maybe. Foolish for thinking none of these towers had cameras? Absolutely.
Tower news quickies
- Eau Claire man dies in fall from Chippewa, CO radio tower
- AT&T’s Missouri chief says every tower in state will be upgraded to 4G LTE
- Holy HetNet Wireless Man, What does this mean?
- Watch this adorable and morbid video about safety
- Tracking Unsafe Towers
- Visit the Unsafe Towers group to report unsafe towers
Regional / local cell tower news
- Palmyra, ID board continues cell tower hearing
- Solar farm and cell tower on Chocowinity, NC planning board agenda
- County passes on Germanton, NC cell tower
- Jackson County, NCÂ cell tower ordinance revision softens up
- Family protests proposed cell phone tower in Famington Township, PA
- Verizon approaches Monroe, PA about new cell tower
- Shaler, PAÂ officials OK modifications to cell tower off Glenn Scott Drive
- Neighbors upset over proposed 55-foot cell tower in Green Valley, AZ
- Verizon pitches cell tower offer to Mesilla, NM officials
- Cell tower rejected in Hernando, MS
- Brevard County, FL wants to put heigh limits on future cell towers
- Rural area wrong place for Falmouth, ME cell tower
- 80-foot cell tower proposed near Bitterroot River in Hamilton, MT
- King George County, VA OKs cell tower request
- Fejervary Park cell tower moving forward in Davenport, IA
- School board in Stillwater, MN says no evidence cell tower will hurt kids
- What happened to the prposed cell tower at Battle High School in Columbia, MO
This week’s edition of cell tower industry news is created by Jarad Matula and brought to you by Towercrews.net.
Featured photo by Ali and Jeremy Walker
