The public tower companies — they get all the headlines. But it’s the smaller towercos that provide the muscle and long hours it takes to build towers in tough zoning areas. Based in North Haven, CT but with a national presence, ARX Wireless builds the towers that others couldn’t or didn’t even want to attempt.
Keith Coppins, CEO and partner of ARX, has nearly 30 years of experience developing hundreds of towers, serving in key development and management executive positions with American Tower and small towercos, including OptaSite, which sold its towers to SBA Communications. After Optasite, Coppins started Phoenix Partnership, LLC and had several joint ventures with prominent tower companies.
Coppins doesn’t do it alone, though. He has a staff of employees and consultants, spread across the country. The company is backed by private equity Crosstimbers Capital Group located in Houston, TX and has significant financial and personnel resources available. Matt Barnes, Director of Finance and Operations for ARX in its Denver office, oversees the finances. ARX Wireless corporate counsel Julie Kohler, has been instrumental in the development of the company’s sites. She is a partner at Cohen and Wolf, PC, based in Bridgeport, CT and has nearly 28 years of experience specializing in telecommunications.
ARX largely handles its own site acquisition. It manages the zoning process and site construction, as well as tower leasing. ARX towers have a high lease-up as the towers are located in difficult zoning areas with a high demand for wireless and a dearth of existing towers.
Keys to Successful Zoning
Not only is ARX willing to take on difficult zoning, but far more often than not, the ARX team is successful. The secret behind its success is extensive due diligence, meticulous preparation and the development of local contacts.
Local knowledge is a big plus when siting a tower, according to Coppins. Equally important are long-term carrier relationships that Coppins and his team have developed over their 30 plus years in the industry.
“We’re identifying the right locations, doing our homework and solving problems in advance,” Coppins said.
Future Growth in Store
ARX expects to double it tower count by the end of 2022 and double it again in 2023. As a result of the future growth, ARX is adding integral members to it team. As an example, ARX recently hired Elizabeth Nash located in Houston, TX as its Director of Business Development. Elizabeth has 27 years of experience in the industry previously working SBA, Crown Castle and Black and Veatch among others.
Don’t expect ARX Wireless to lose the advantage of being a private tower company. Coppins said, “being nimble, well capitalized, and strategic has a lot to do with our success.”
To contact ARX Wireless, click here: https://arxwireless.com/contact-us/ or you can email Keith directly at kcoppins@arxwireless.com.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
Reader Interactions