A cellphone tower disguised as a spruce tree may soon be rising up near a ski lift at Alyeska Resort.
If the application from Verizon Wireless is approved, the "camouflaged" tower would be the first of its kind in Anchorage, city planners say. At the behest of Alyeska's owners, Verizon is looking to replace an existing wooden cellphone tower with a steel structure with fiberglass branches and faux bark to match Girdwood trees.
Also called "stealth towers" or "monopines," leafy cell towers seem poised to become a more common sight in Alaska. Anchorage city planners are researching ways to rewrite the city's tower regulations and requirements. No camouflaged towers exist in Anchorage now, but last week, the city's planning commission directed General Communications Inc. to disguise a planned Chugiak pole like a tree in response to community concerns.
Camouflaged towers can be found throughout the Lower 48. In California, some designs look like palm trees; in Arizona, cactus. But they've been slow to come to Alaska, in large part because of pushback from the telecommunications industry over concerns about snow loads, ice and maintenance.
"The issue isn't just of camouflage, it's also an issue of serviceability and reliability," said David Morris, a spokesman for GCI. "If it can't maintain a snow load or an ice load … it's extremely challenging to service the thing when there is an issue."
While standing by its objections, GCI is now weighing how to respond to a recent decision by the Planning and Zoning Commission on a tower near Norton Court in Chugiak. The commission's ruling included the following condition: "The tower shall be camouflaged to look like a tree."
The condition came in response to strong community concerns about the aesthetics of a 120-foot pole in a rural area. In a letter to GCI, Chugiak Community Council president Maria Rentz wrote that while the council recognized the need for cell towers, there was considerable opposition to the Norton Court tower as neighbors worried about property values and mountain views.
Morris said he believed the Norton Court tower would be GCI's first camouflage tower in Anchorage. He said the company is looking at the decision and debating its options.
Meanwhile, in Girdwood, Verizon spokesman Scott Charlston said the Alyeska cell site would be Verizon's first in Alaska with "stealth characteristics." Charlston wrote in an email that there's still concern that adding extra material to the tower could be a problem with snow, ice and windstorms.
But in this case, Charlston said, Verizon is working with Alyeska to accommodate demand for Girdwood residents and visitors to the resort. In a June 30 letter to city planners, Verizon representative Justin Abbott said the company had originally planned to replace the existing wooden tower on ski resort property with a painted pole.
"During the negotiations with Alyeska resort, the owners decided that a camouflaged tower would be a more suitable design at this location," Abbott wrote. An Alyeska representative referred questions to Verizon.
Abbott added that the "monopine" tower would be designed to accommodate AT&T, Verizon and another future wireless carrier. He said Verizon had selected Arizona-based Larson Camouflage as the manufacturer. A rendering of the tower shows what looks like a large tree rising out of a small grove next to the ski lift at the base of Tanaka Hill.
Charlston said Verizon expects to complete the project, along with three others in the Girdwood area, in the next few months. The city Planning and Zoning Commission is set to review the proposal at its July 20 meeting.