BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Agenda Item #29
Title
Lease of County Property for Communications Tower and Tower Management Services (Amended)
Amount
N/A
Description
Request Authorization: Lease of county property for communications tower and tower managment services
Recommendation
Authorize staff to publish an RFP requesting proposals from wireless providers and tower construction firms to construct, operate, and maintain wireless facilities on county-owned property.
Alternative(s)
Do not authorize staff to publish the RFP
Requested By
Randall H. Reid
Originating Department
County Manager's Office
Attachment(s) Description
n/a
Documents Requiring Action
n/a
Executive Summary
On Tuesday, March 18, 2008, staff requested authorization from the County Commission to publish an RFP requesting proposals from wireless providers and tower construction firms to construct, operated, and maintain wireless facilities on county-owned property. The Commission asked staff to place this item on their regular meeting agenda for consideration.
Background
Staff is requesting authorization to publish an RFP requesting proposals from wireless providers and tower construction firms to construct, operatae, and maintain wirelss facilities on county-owned property. The wireless provider and/or tower construction firm would lease land from the Coutny to construct a wireless facility designed to enable the sub-lease of antenna space to other wireless providers or to the public sector. If the County needed space for one of their public safety communication antennas, we could potentially negotiate for that space to be of no cost to the County. This would be an opportunity for the County to generate lease revenues and potentially, it could also be an opportunity for the County to save money in the near term future by not having to replace at least one county-owned tower that is currently scheduled for replacement. In terms of fiscal impact, Alachua County would collect a base rent for the leased area and collect as additional rent, a percentage of any revenue generated by sub-leases. In addition, the tower facility itself would be subject to ad valorem taxes. Of course the location of the tower and market conditions will impact the amount of revenue generated by a tower however, other counties report an average rate of approximately $2,000 per month. In August 2007, the Alachua County Library District published an RFP for the same purpose; staff is recommending the county closely follow the Library District's model if the Commission wishes to move forward with this project. The District's RFP indicates how the proposals will be evaluated and states that the evaluation will be based on a combination of qualifications and proposed features with an emphasis on the following goals: 1) the plans are superior technical quality and will result in a facility that will have capacity for wireless service providers and generate revenue for the Commission 2) proposals that include graphics illustrating that the tower and the ground equipment are visually compatible with the surrounding neighborhood 3) proposals that favor site efficiency and minimize the demand on floor and/or ground space and on antenna space 4) shortest tower height with consideration for the need to accomodate future tenants 5) inclusion of a fall zone 6) shortest timeframe to complete 7) proposals that maximize lease/rental revenue to the county 8) and, proposals that describe plans for continued mamangement and maintenance of the tower and tower site. The County has identified several locations suitable for wireless facilities and has catagorized them as follows: 1) Parks, 2) Vacant Land, 3) Alachua County Forever Land, 4) Buildings and Facilities, 5) Existing Tower Locations. The RFP will stipulate that wireless facilities may be located only in "disturbed areas" (i.e. parking on the Alachua County Forever land. With respect to the new Judicial Service center that is currentlyin the design phase, staff will work with the architect, DLR Group to locate a wireless facility/facilities in a location that minimizes the visual impact of the facility. The RFP will request the deconstruction/reconstruction of the tower in Hague and will request consideration of co-location opportunities on all county owned towers as well as consideration of the necessary on-going maintenance.
Issues
Long term administration of this project will require county staff to develop and maintain expertise in this area so as to successfully administer all agreements for the lease of county property for communications towers and tower management servcies.
Fiscal Recommendation
Authorize the publication of the RFP requesting proposals for wireless facilities on county-owned property to generate lease/rental revenue for Alachua County.
Fiscal Alternative(s)
Do not authorize the RFP and forego the opportunity to generate lease/rental revenue.
Funding Sources
n/a
Account Code(s)
n/a
Attachment: Property List for Wireless Towers (2).pdf