At Monday’s Town Council meeting, the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency approached the town with a 160-foot-tall request.
Town officials, however, are questioning whether the addition would be too intrusive.
Christopher McGrath presented RIEMA’s proposal asking the town for permission to bring in an existing 160-foot lattice tower to the site of the historic Mowry Fire Tower on Woonsocket Hill Road. The 800 megahertz tower, recently removed from Charlestown by RIEMA, provides a cost-effective solution to increase radio coverage for emergency service radios across northern R.I. It would not involve removing the existing tower, but place the lattice structure next to it.
The 800 MHz system is used by first responders across Rhode Island, Director of RIEMA Marc Pappas told the council.