Planning commission hears Towers LLC plan for new 5G-capable tower; returns case for follow-up

Laurie Schweller, an attorney with Williams Mullen representing Towers LLC, told the Madison County Planning Commission on Feb. 18 that the company is seeking a special-use permit to build a new wireless communications facility on Tax Map 48-25.

Schweller said the proposed facility would support both 4G and 5G services and added technical context about the different frequency bands involved. "The 4 g's Long term evolution LTE service primarily operates in lower frequency bands, typically between 700 megahertz and 2.6 gigahertz," she said. "The 5 g's nationwide Verizon Wireless service uses a broad range of frequencies low, mid and high band…in Madison County, the largest 5 g's frequency Verizon has access to is the C band…at a very high frequency 3,700 megahertz." The applicant noted that higher‑frequency 5G signals travel shorter distances and therefore require towers to be closer together, which is why the proposed site would sit between two upgraded Verizon sites (Shelby at the fairgrounds and a northern site described in the presentation).

Commissioners asked whether Verizon would rent space exclusively and whether other providers could co‑locate. Schweller said Towers LLC would own and manage the tower and Verizon would be a lessee at the top array; "other providers could apply to the towers LLC to co locate on this tower," she said, describing co‑location as governed by commercial lease arrangements. Commissioners also inquired about reserving space for emergency or public‑service use; the applicant said that possibility has not been discussed in the current proposal but could be negotiated up front if the county wishes to secure that right.

Staff said the application narrative was updated to reflect 5G uses and that the applicant provided additional slides to address questions raised at the first workshop. The commission did not take a final vote at the Feb. 18 session; staff will return with final details at the next meeting and the case is scheduled for a subsequent workshop/public hearing.