Cell service could expand in Fisher River area

Cellular telephone service between Libby and Kalispell could be improving soon, if site studies support the preliminary decision and regulatory requirements can be met. 

The board of trustees of the Fisher River Fire Service Area held a public meeting Feb. 27 to hear comments about the proposed new tower, which would be constructed at the organizations No. 1 site at Happy’s Inn on U.S. Highway 2 between Libby and Kalispell. After hearing public comment, the board voted unanimously to contract with SBA Towers to proceed with the preliminary phases of the project.

“All comments were positive and so the FSA board of trustees voted unanimously to sign a contract with SBA to begin preliminary studies,” trustee George Neils wrote in a Feb. 29 press release. “These would include verifying good physical characteristics of the site, clearance through the various government entities and regulations and negotiating with a local fiber-optic company for access.”

Neils said the anticipated new service area would stretch from Lower Thompson Lake and the Flathead-Lincoln county line to the Silver Butte corner on U.S. Highway 2. The company and the fire service board anticipate the major cell providers would lease space on the tower, as well as possibly wireless broadband providers and local governments for radio trunking services.

The fire service area would receive a monthly rent from SBA towers as part of the 30-year contract.