Edgecomb considers tower deal
This 1991 ambulance arrived last month at the Edgecomb Fire Station, as a donation from an ambulance service in New York state. Fire Chief Roy Potter said he hopes it will wind up being used at fire scenes county-wide, as a “rehabilitation unit” for checking out firefighters after they have been inside a burning building. Potter discussed the ambulance with Edgecomb selectmen August 12. SUSAN JOHNS/Wiscasset Newspaper
This 1991 ambulance arrived last month at the Edgecomb Fire Station, as a donation from an ambulance service in New York state. Fire Chief Roy Potter said he hopes it will wind up being used at fire scenes county-wide, as a “rehabilitation unit” for checking out firefighters after they have been inside a burning building. Potter discussed the ambulance with Edgecomb selectmen August 12. SUSAN JOHNS/Wiscasset Newspaper
A 100-foot-tall cell phone tower could be going up at the Edgecomb Fire Station, and if it doesn't go there, it will likely end up somewhere else in town, town officials said.
American Tower Corporation has floated an initial offer of $1,100 or $1,200 a month it would pay the town to lease space for the steel tower, Fire Chief Roy Potter said. The company would sublet it to AT&T, Potter said.
The lease would still need to be negotiated, selectmen said.
For the tower to go up on the fire station property, the town, as the property owner, would need to seek planning board approval. Selectmen plan to decide August 26 if they will apply.
The company has other sites picked out that the tower could go in Edgecomb if not at the fire station, Potter told selectmen. “They would rather work with the town than a private individual,” he said.
Potter said the fire department does not oppose having the tower on the station's land. It could aid in communications, he said. “There's times pages go out and that we don't get the pages.”
Selectmen planned to ask town attorney William Dale if voters would need to agree to lease the land. They also want Dale's input on the lease; he has worked on cell phone tower agreements in other towns, Selectman Jessica Chubbuck said.
The tower would have to comply with town rules, which could limit where it could go on the station property, town officials said.
The return of Edgecomb first responders
For the first time in years, Edgecomb has a licensed team of first responders, Potter said. He, Wiscasset Ambulance Service director Roland Abbott and two others will serve on it, he said.
First responders ended locally in 2008 with the resignation of a fire chief who was the only licensed first responder, Potter said in a January interview.
First responders can work to control bleeding or do other initial tasks before an ambulance arrives, Potter has said.
Visit the shelter
Chubbuck encouraged people to adopt a pet from the Lincoln County Animal Shelter in Edgecomb. Her family recently adopted an older cat from there, and there are still many kittens and cats available, she said.
For those not looking to adopt, Chubbuck suggested donating money or time to the shelter. Visits help to socialize the animals, she said.
Susan Johns can be reached at 207-844-4633 or susanjohns@wiscassetnewspaper.com
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