COMMUNICATIONS
& TECHNOLOGY AD HOC COMMITTEE
MEETING
MINUTES
MAY
19, 2010
**
NOT APPROVED **
Members
Present: D. Pullen, M. Healy, Mike Johnson and Jerry
Scott
Others
Present: C. Crandall,
F. Sinclair, T. Hopkins, K. LaForge, G. Benson, D. Fanton, J. Margeson, T.
Miner, M. Alger, J. Foels, K. Dirlam, L. Gridley, S. Torrey, R. Hall, Sherriff
Tompkins and NYS Trooper Dave Gresham
Call
to Order: The meeting was called to order by Chairman
David Pullen at 9:48 a.m.
Approval of Minutes
A motion was
made by Legislator Healy, seconded by Chairman Pullen and carried 4-0 to
approve the minutes of March 8, 2010.
Introduction
Chairman
Pullen invited all guests to introduce themselves and then gave an update
stating there may be funding available and several meetings have been held to
establish direction. It is very
challenging to meet the qualifications for stimulus funding and a study has
been prepared which he has a copy of.
The purpose of today’s meeting is to determine how the Committee should
move forward and which entities should be involved. Cellular phones, Internet and operations are
the key focus. Emergency responders
including 911, Communications Network, Sheriff’s Department, State Police and
Fire Departments are key entities to be factored in. Fiber Optics might not be a possibility for
our area due to funding. For that reason
other options must be considered.
M. Johnson
noted a grant had been received by Southern Tier West (STW) in the amount of
$600,000. It has been used to provide
successful wireless coverage to the Swain area.
STW is currently working on providing additional service to the Rushford
area. There was discussion regarding
“pockets” or areas that could be connected together with shared towers. He reported that Richard Zink of STW and
committee members met yesterday regarding moving forward with towers. It is hoped that towers will be on the ground
in Rushford by the end of August. The
original sites were to built going from West to East, but plans were
re-directed to East to West to accommodate the needs of the
M. Johnson
also reported there is funding available for the “last mile” of service. The new Western District Manager for Frontier
Telephone will be meeting later today with Mike Johnson. Frontier has been fairly cooperative and
responsive thus far. The committee is
pursuing all forms of communications, not just fiber optics and DSL.
There was discussion regarding shared services within the county for cell phone towers. We favor working together to connect them, thereby reducing the total number of towers. We have no control over use of space on each tower. Usage is in the discretion of Verizon. Most townships in the county do not have zoning; therefore, there are no restrictions on the building of cell towers. There was further discussion regarding cell tower restrictions due to landowners and zoning. The question was asked if
townships can
adopt SEQR to acquire a permit approval for a tower. M. Johnson responded, “yes, and that was what
his township did.” It was noted that
townships don’t have the power to remove towers, but they can approve planning
permits with restrictions. C. Crandall
commented that once the “needs” surveys are completed and the pocket areas are
noted, we can look into utilizing the existing towers and determine the needs
for wireless service in areas that do not need towers.
J. Scott
reported he visited Swain recently and was very impressed with the wireless
service that had been installed. He
recommended proceeding one step at a time.
The key next step at this point is obtaining the needs survey results.
A question was
raised regarding how many fire service towers the county owns and who has
jurisdiction. Russ Hall, Fire Service,
reported the county does not own all the existing towers. There is one tower in Grove that is
county-owned and ready for use. All
others are not cross-stabilized at this time.
He is working with STW and Southern Tier Wireless for shared
services. Southern Tier Wireless has
offered broadband access for the Grove tower owned by the County. When asked, Russ commented he would probably
be the best contact person. He reported
the following fire service towers are available:
Hamilton Hill, in
Ackerman/Corbin
Hill, in
replaced 16
years ago, which is an issue)
White Hill, in
County Rd. 12, in Alfred – Cell
phone space only
County Rd. 21, in
There was
discussion on the possible purchase of the tower in Birdsall and what funding
might be available. D. Pullen reported on
the stimulus funding for rural broadband.
He explained that we may qualify for consideration but we don’t have
enough population density per mile to qualify for co-axial and commercial
business access. We are competing with
counties such as
There was
discussion regarding the interaction between New York State Police, 911 and
Economic Development. Legislator Healy
noted there is some funding available for Public Safety and the Public Safety
Committee is looking to apply for what is available. R. Hall will survey towers and establish
infrastructure needs and what’s usable.
He needs a recommendation from the committee before moving forward. It was determined that the needs survey must
be completed before a determination can be made regarding the needs of NYS
Police and Sheriff’s Office, so there is no duplication of services. Sheriff Tompkins reported that it is
important to remember as we move forward that public safety should come first
and that it should remain a priority as different agencies become involved.
There was
discussion regarding a possible study and any funding source available. The ARRA fund was discussed and the need to
possibly retain a consultant. There was
consensus that if a consultant is used that the County consider using Mike
Saia, a local communications supplier, who is very familiar with our area. Legislator Sinclair suggested the
Comprehensive Implementation Group could possibly fund the expense of such a
study, and should consider obtaining an estimate from Mr. Saia. R. Hall also suggested working with David
Cook, a principal designer of the statewide wireless system. That was a very detailed plan. He also agreed that Mike Saia is an excellent
resource but may not have all the missing pieces. Jerry Scott remarked the “pipe” needs to be
in place to serve everyone, whether it is fiber or radio. Legislative Chairman Crandall commented no further
money would be spent until the needs survey is completed. It was suggested a meeting with Mr. Saia be
held through the NYS Troopers. R. Hall
further suggested instead of a broad study through a survey, it may be better
to do a needs assessment for the commercial areas; targeting a specific area
versus the whole county.
A grant
application was discussed and J. Foels suggested that R. Hall work together
with County Planner Kier Dirlam and STW to gather information and bring it back
to the committee. Once that is available
the committee can look into a grant application. K. Dirlam said funding appears secondary at
this time. He agreed that he would work
with Russ Hall to streamline and pull various resources together. There is grant funding for “last mile” and
911, so it was suggested that 911 and the Ad Hoc Committee work together and
decide which is the best entity to apply for grant funding.
Chairman
Pullen asked for any comments from Trooper Gresham regarding NYS Troopers
concerns. He reported the NYS Troopers
have three legs of communication:
1. Landbased radio – leased tower space
2. Statewide vehicle locator – satellite driven
3. Most important is to piggyback off County 911 System, which is necessary for public safety
NYS Troopers
will support any initiative the county takes with a ground based radio
system. It is important they remain
linked to the 911 system. They would be
willing to do a letter of support for any grant funding applications the County
might submit.
A motion was
made by Legislator Sinclair; seconded by Legislator Healy and carried to
adjourn the meeting at 10:52 a.m.
Respectfully
Submitted:
Cathleen L.
Whitfield
Recording Secretary