AT&T requests rent reduction for cell tower lease

MILLERTON — Beginning at 6 p.m., the Village Board kicked off its regular board meeting on Monday, Sept. 21, with a discussion regarding the request it received from AT&T to reduce its monthly rental amount for its cell tower.

To date, Village Attorney Ian MacDonald said AT&T rents space for that cell tower atop the village water tower. In previous years, he said the company has requested a reduction in the monthly rental amount under the claim that “this is to get the rental amount in line with what other municipalities are paying.”

MacDonald reported AT&T is currently paying $2,432.27 a month and is looking to reduce the monthly rental amount to $2,334.77. In exchange for the reduction, he said AT&T is offering a period of guaranteed rent payments to the village. Under the current lease, MacDonald said AT&T has the ability to terminate the lease. However, he said the company is proposing that, if the village agrees to the reduction, AT&T will agree to be bound by the lease and stay in it for at least the next five years.

Answering Mayor Debbie Middlebrook’s question as to when the current lease expires, MacDonald said he was unable to find out as the lease itself expired several years ago. Under the amendment made to the lease, he said AT&T has the ability to extend the lease for up to five, five-year terms. Responding to Village Trustee Matthew Hartzog’s question regarding how ironclad this agreement is, MacDonald replied that AT&T is willing to commit in writing to pay rent over the next five years.

“What they do is up to them,” he said. “I can’t predict what they’re going to do over the next five years. If they didn’t pay, you would have a cause of action against them for the rent that they haven’t paid.”

With the next term scheduled to start this February, MacDonald said AT&T has agreed to commit itself to the five-year period; after that initial five-year period, the lease is subject to five, five-year renewal terms. Once the village goes into its next term, he said the company wouldn’t be able to terminate the lease until 60 days prior to the end of the five-year term.

Considering the financial side of this agreement, Village Clerk Kelly Kilmer said that if the board agreed to this new agreement with AT&T, the village would be right where it’s supposed to be with its current fiscal budget. Village Trustee Jenn Najdek asked if there would be an incremental increase in the monthly rent with each of the five years or if the amount AT&T has proposed would remain the same amount every year for the next five years. MacDonald replied that there would be incremental increases, though what AT&T is proposing is that the rent would stay at the monthly amount of $2,3334.77 until the end of the 10th year. After that point, the monthly amount would increase by about $46.

The board also took into account the other factors related to this agreement, such as the impact this agreement might have on 5G. Middlebrook considered that the other option is that if the village says “no” to the agreement, AT&T can terminate the lease and walk away. MacDonald added that the board might want to consider what, under the current lease agreement, the incremental increases are. He also noted that the offer from AT&T doesn’t appear to have an expiration date.

Toward the end of their discussion, Middlebrook asked MacDonald to keep the board informed with regard to AT&T so that it can make a decision.