Adler Engineering Inc. has won a contract with the state of New Jersey to evaluate all state-owned property for wireless antenna siting and assist in marketing viable sites to carriers.
Adler Engineering, headquartered in Barrington, N.J., provides site design, surveying, environmental investigation and structural engineering and analysis to carriers. Under the New Jersey contract, Adler will rate all government-controlled properties-about 10,000-for their viability to support wireless sites.
Adler will develop a siting criteria that addresses general issues such as zoning, U.S. Department of Transportation, Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Communications Commission and Federal Aviation Administration regulations regarding antenna siting. The document also will address issues specific to New Jersey, including Pinelands, Coastal Area Facility Review Act, New Jersey Department of Transportation and municipal regulations, said the company.
Collocation on existing sites and new sites placed on buildings rather than on raw-land sites will be favored, said Kenneth Long, vice president of the company.
Ultimately, Adler will complete a rating system of the viable sites, which will be offered for lease to wireless and paging providers. The document is expected to be completed within the next few months.
The company also said it will devise a lease rate plan based on geographic regions.
The contract is part of an effort by the state government to partner with municipalities and major wireless carriers to proactively bring about siting solutions that accomplish the goals of all interested parties. The state will have access to a share of the revenues received from wireless antenna leases.
Last year, New Jersey’s governor halted all equipment siting on state-owned property due to municipal complaints of non-notification.
The state is working in conjunction with the Wireless Carriers Coalition-which includes Sprint Spectrum L.P., Bell Atlantic Mobile, AT&T Wireless Services Inc., Omnipoint Communications Inc., Comcast Cellular Communications Inc. and Nextel Communications Inc.-and the League of Municipalities to put together a program that will mandate notification by the state to municipalities prior to siting wireless equipment on state-owned properties.
The Wireless Carriers Coalition was formed a couple of years ago to encourage states to use rights-of-way for wireless siting, said Alan Zublatt, a spokesman for the coalition. That resulted in the New Jersey Department of Transportation program, which grew into a statewide General Services Administration program for tower siting.
“There’s always been a problem in siting that deals with educating communities and residents to make sure they understand the process and alleviate their concerns,” said Zublatt. “We have had some growing pains with the public process, but they have been worth it.
“Now we’re on the verge of a breakthrough.”
Adler said it will work with the state to develop a communications process to notify municipalities prior to building a wireless antenna.
