A Tough Cell

The ARCC is committed to representing the interests of our membership and this amazing region where you can Live Like You're on Vacation. This morning we were contacted by a member company, AAA Northway with regard to an issue that has regional implications - Cell Phone Coverage to the Adirondack Northway. Included in the communication was a copy of petition AAA Northway is circulating to attempt to hasten the agreement made in April of 2007 by the Governor of New York State to establish cell service on the Northway.

We chose to alert our members of the petition and provide a way for each member to sign the petition. If you would like a copy of the email we sent to over 1000 members please contact Amanda Magee.

In response to the email we received the following letter from an employee of an ARCC member company:

I think this is a really bad idea.

I choose to live in an area with scenic beauty away from strip malls and cell towers. Once this beauty is gone, there will be no way to bring it back.

Aside from making the Adirondacks look like Long Island, I think this is a colossal waste of resources. Could you imagine how many lives could be saved if we chose to spend the millions on health care?

There is a reason why we have parks, industrial parks, and residential neighborhoods. It is so we can get our work done while at the same time maintaining our quality of life.

Best Regards,
Name withheld for use here

This individual was responded to by the ARCC with this:

I/we appreciate your concern but what we're talking about is a balance. I'm sure there are options for the state to devise that will effectively "hide" the towers from the key viewing areas yet provide travelers that frequent many of our local destinations from Canada with the security they deserve in these times. I've had many occasions in the Adirondacks with my young children where we've thought what would we do if something happened because our cell phones had no service. This doesn't need to be the case particularly along the northway where a highway already exists. In addition, the state and the APA have agreed to move forward with cell towers so this petition addresses the foot dragging and inability of government to act quickly on a commitment that has already been made. I hope this helps to explain why we're taking such action in support of AAA and our region's economic future.

Todd L. Shimkus, CCE
President/CEO
Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce

AAA Northway also responded with the following:

Amanda Magee from the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce forwarded us your comments regarding our petition effort. We appreciate your candid feedback. Allow me to explain AAA’s position in more detail.

While maintaining the natural beauty of the Park is important to AAA, we view cellular coverage in the area as an absolute necessity. AAA does not favor one means of cellular tower/coverage over another. The height, appearance and location of any towers are the domain of the Adirondack Park Agency, New York State and Verizon. Those groups have reached an agreement in principle to build towers for cell coverage but they have set no time table for when it will actually be available. Our petition drive is an effort to move the process along and make coverage available sooner rather than later. Our sole concern with the petition drive is the safety of all motorists traveling this stretch of highway. In our view, it is not a financial or environmental matter but a matter of life and death in some instances.

Thank you again for your comments.

Regards,

Eric Stigberg
Marketing, Public & Government Affairs Manager
AAA Northway

The petition is available on the AAA Northway site.

Do you have an opinion on this issue? Leave a comment and let us know.