CHELSEA — A proposal to sell the town’s cellular tower on Route 226 in Chelsea is expected to take center stage at a special town meeting planned for later this month.

Ahead of the vote, the town held a public hearing Wednesday night to discuss and answer questions about two proposals. The first discussion focused on implementing Chelsea’s business district growth omnibus tax increment financing district, also know as a TIF.

The other discussion took aim at the town’s cellular tower proposal, which involves a structure now leased by UScellular that could be leased in the future to additional carriers.

The hearing, held at Chelsea Elementary School, included a presentation by consultant Reagan LaRochelle on the TIF and what it could mean for the town.

Residents are scheduled to vote on the two articles at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 23, at Chelsea Elementary School, 566 Togus Road. For the vote to count, 25 members of the public must participate in the vote, according to town officials.

A TIF is a tool used by municipalities to provide tax breaks meant to encourage economic development.

Advertisement

“Municipalities that might see a significant jump in evaluation because of property really appreciate this tool to draw a TIF district of the property to have that value sheltered for the district,” LaRochelle said.

The proposed value of the TIF district in Chelsea is now $6,239,337 for 222.2 acres.

Town Manager Scott Tilton said there are already three businesses being developed within the TIF area: Hyde Medicinal Cultivation Facility, a welding business and a storage facility.

Although the businesses are within the town of Chelsea and add to the town’s property value, the town can still benefit because the overall taxable value can save it money when it comes to county and school taxes.

“That becomes important because a town’s valuation does through a different funding formula that gives the town funding that goes into aid for education, calculates revenue share and also goes into county tax calculation,” Tilton said. “The thought is, if a town is ‘richer’ with more valuation, it would get less money for education, less money through revenue share and higher county taxes.”

The town is not yet implementing the TIF because voters must still vote on it. The TIF covers a 30-year period and amendments can be made at any time, if approved by voters at a public hearing.

Advertisement

Chelsea residents later this month are also expected to discuss and vote on a proposal to sell the town’s cellular tower to Everest Infrastructure Partners for $275,000. Town officials have been approached a number of times to sell the tower, beginning in 2011 for about $125,000, and have decided this year is a good time to sell.

Officials said the offer from Everest, based in Pittsburgh, is the “best one” the town is likely to receive.

UScellular now leases the cell tower at the intersection of Route 226 and Eastern Avenue for $9,816 a year.

If voters decide to sell the tower, Everest would buy it for cash, according to officials, who said the money would go back into the community, possibly as a new Town Office.

Recent discussion related to the cellular tower has focused on whether it would be converted to 5G technology, which is the fifth-generation standard for broadband cellular networks and is the successor to 4G networks, which now provide connectivity to most cellphones.

Residents have said while there is a cellular tower in town, calls still drop “all the time.”

“Sure, there is the ability to expand it out and put a bigger one in, no doubt,” Tilton said.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.