Following the success of its partnership with AT&T in 2023, the Cherokee Nation has announced that it intends to build 15 new cell towers in various locations in Oklahoma. The cell towers will be placed in native communities where connectivity is currently inadequate, or even absent. As Talk Business reports, the Nation anticipates spending $80 million in ARPA funding over the next three years to facilitate the project.
The groundwork established with AT&T has already seen the construction of the Kenwood cell tower, as well as the Connected Learning Center in Catoosa. Located at the J.W. Sam-Gadusi building, the Center was designed to serve Native citizens and community members who have encountered connectivity barriers. Internet access and educational tools are available to those in need of assistance.
“A few years ago, COVID-19 highlighted the critical connectivity needs for Cherokee communities across portions of the Cherokee Nation Reservation, particularly those where high numbers of Cherokee speakers reside. Installation of a cell tower in the Cherokee community of Kenwood in 2023 has proven to be a model for overcoming these barriers, and it is a model worthy of repeating,” stated Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “These 15 new towers and the growth of the first Cherokee Nation-owned broadband network are major milestones in our efforts to connect these 16 rural Cherokee communities with permanent solutions.”
According to Talk Business, Entrust Engineering has been hired to begin conducting surveys to help select cell tower sites for the outreach communities. The new cell towers are planned for locations in Adair, Delaware, Cherokee, and Sequoyah County communities: Belfonte, Bell/CC Camp, Brent, Brushy, Chewey, Christie, Dry Creek, Eucha, Greasy, Marble City, Oakhill/Piney, Oaks, Proctor, Tailholt, and Vian, with some broadband network ties extending into Mayes County.
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