Radio Tower Revenue Raise Questions

The Auburn City Council in New York is questioning whether or not they should sell their radio tower after they received three letters of intent from companies seeking to purchase the 250-foot radio tower. The tower was built in 1920 and then enhanced in 2000 with LED lighting, a 911 system, and equipment for four carriers. The city currently receives almost $68,000 in rent annually, which offsets the $9,000 in expenses for maintaining the tower. The Auburn Citizen said the three letters of intent include three very different proposals, “The first company offered to merely purchases the leases for $600,000, meaning the city would still own the land and the actual tower. The second company sought to solely buy the leases for $650,000. And the third company offered to give Auburn $725,000 and set up a future partnership where the city would get 50 percent of the revenues for any new towers put on existing municipal structures.” Councilor Terry Cuddy stated that although the approximately $700,000 lump sum sounds attractive, the $67,644 worth of rent the city gets every year for allowing the tenants to lease a spot on the tower is a steady income that would be hard to give up.