Short Beach Finally ​“Going Live”

Ringtones may be more popular than silver bells this holiday as cell phone service finally arrives in Short Beach. The new 120-foot cell tower at 171 Short Beach Rd. is scheduled to become operational Friday.

It has taken four long years to achieve this moment.

A knowledgeable person close to the situation said the anticipated on-air date is Dec. 20. However, he cautioned that there can be last-minute glitches with these projects.

The tower, which will include both AT&T and Verizon antennas, will also serve adjacent portions of East Haven.

Short Beach residents have been clamoring for cell service for several years. More than an inconvenience, the lack of cell service has been a safety issue. Residents in the shoreline neighborhood suffered through tropical storms, nor’easters, and blizzards without being able to use their cell phones in their own homes. Anyone driving through the area also hits a dead zone.

“I am delighted that Short Beach is finally ‘going live,’” said state Rep. Lonnie Reed (D-Branford), who spearheaded cell tower legislation that became law last year, giving towns more input into the site selection process.

Despite the need for service, the task of finding an agreeable location for a tower was not easy. Residents vocally opposed several sites that were suggested over the years. Click here to read about the first site that was proposed in the heart of Short Beach in 2009.

Construction of the tower began last spring but it was not slated to be operational until April. 1 The project was fast-tracked after Reed intervened and explained the urgency of the situation to a senior AT&T official. The target date was then set for Jan. 1. Click here to read that story.

“The Short Beach cell tower experience illustrates how much we’ve changed the way we communicate,” Reed said in an interview. “We’ve come to depend on mobile phones and tablets to connect by voice or text, two-way video, instant photo and to access all kinds of data. Over time, Short Beachers who once objected to a cell tower started urging me to hurry it up. People need the technology for work and don’t feel safe without it.”

The tower is located at the rear of the Air Inc. property, a heating and air conditioning business owned by Wayne Krasnow. It was built by AT&T and North Atlantic Towers LLC, previously known as Florida Tower Partners LLC. The location was approved last December by the Connecticut Siting Council (CSC), which oversees cell tower placement. 

Two possible locations were submitted, but the CSC chose the Branford site instead of the alternate choice of a 103-foot tower that would have been built at 82 Short Beach Rd. in East Haven, behind the Riverside Volunteer Fire Department. The property is owned by the volunteer firefighters, who would have received rent from AT&T for use of the land.

During hearings conducted by the CSC, Branford officials, the town’s consulting engineer and a cell tower attorney testified that that the East Haven site would be less intrusive and would serve a greater population. Residents of both towns testified that they opposed a cell tower in their neighborhood. The CSC said the Branford location would provide better coverage. This is the third tower the CSC has approved for Branford in a three-year period.

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