A lot to consider: Town discusses cell tower at West Acton depot
The town may still seek Rideout Park proposals, but are considering an alternative location at the MBTA parking lot.
Town staff may soon seek builders’ proposals for a flagpole-style cell tower at Rideout Park. In the meantime, officials are also opening the door to an alternative location at the West Acton MBTA parking lot.
“It’s something worth looking into,” Deputy Town Manager Megan Zammuto told the Select Board this month.
Officials have ramped up efforts in West Acton amid a broader push to patch cell coverage gaps.
The town “remains on track” to request Rideout proposals in the spring, Zammuto told The Acton Bridge.
She said she’s stayed in touch with neighbors and community groups, some of whom have publicly worried about taking up park space and the aesthetics of a new monopole where Rideout’s flagpole now stands.
Some residents suggested pivoting to the train station parking lot. The town owns the property, but decades-old agreements with the MBTA govern its use, Zammuto said.
She presented the Rideout option to the Select Board in October and said she heard support for the idea. If the parking lot proves feasible, she said she would bring that option back to the panel.
Long timeline
Wherever they encourage companies to build a West Acton antenna, staff won’t guarantee immediate dead-zone relief.
More than 18 months after a July 2024 request for proposals, the town has selected Verizon to build an antenna at the Umbrella Arts Center, but the transmitter isn’t online. Zammuto told the Select Board on January 12 that staff were close to finalizing a lease for Verizon to use part of the town-owned building.
Officials sought proposals for a cell tower at the old Acton landfill in October 2024. New York-based Wireless Edge scored the winning bid, but the firm still has to navigate town permitting before starting construction.A planned set of low-power AT&T antennas along Sudbury Road “continues to move forward,” per Zammuto.
Officials are advancing a zoning package to overhaul rules limiting where companies can put cell infrastructure. This will go to Town Meeting in April, Zammuto said.
Spotty service
Views vary on which carrier offers the best — and worst — service under Acton’s spotty status quo. Some try switching for more consistent coverage.
Bob Boes lives on Old Bedford Road near the Bedford border and said his connection was “terrible” when he used AT&T. He said he’s had better luck since switching to Verizon.
Though some fear health effects from cell tower radiation, he said he’s not concerned.
The coverage problem “has always been much worse in Acton Center,” Recreation Commission Chair Phil Griffiths said shortly after officials started eyeing Rideout.
Griffiths sometimes deals with dropped calls around his Conant Street home, but said “it’s nowhere near as bad.”
The Select Board has urged Acton Center improvements. Though the other side of town might be better off, panelists included upgraded coverage among their goals for the current fiscal year.
“We are moving in the right direction,” Select Board member Cameron McKennitt told The Bridge.
Some things are out of the town’s control, he said, so “we need to execute on what we can control in a timely manner.”
Select Board Chair Mark Howell said the Rideout monopole “makes a lot of sense,” because “it’s not really that much of a footprint.” He’s still interested in the MBTA opportunity and said Acton should continue reviewing its options.
While Concordians wait for a fix, he said, the current coverage “leaves a lot to be desired.”
As efforts inch along, Howell recalled helping add municipal broadband as Acton’s chief information officer. He said utility work can be slow going — until it isn’t.
“There’s a lot of preparation activity to get everything lined up,” he said, “and then it just happens.”
