Cell Phone Service Woes Addressed By Town

EAST HAMPTON, NY — Along with the beauty of the East End's pristine beaches and bucolic open space, the joy of farm fresh produce and offerings from the sea, comes the less than savory fact of life that has residents and visitors crying out for help, especially with an influx of people crowding the area during the days of the pandemic— a growing frustration over sometimes spotty cell phone service.

In an attempt to try and find answers, the East Hampton town board recently passed a resolution to hire a communications consultant to help develop a comprehensive coverage strategy.

According to East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc, a steady increase in cell phone and data usage have taxed the wireless communications infrastructure in East Hampton, "outpacing expansion and improvement by the various cellular companies that provide service. In addition, due to the pandemic, there has been both a dramatic increase in our full-time population, and in cell and internet usage. As a result, the current systems are overloaded," he said.

Recently, to meet a surge in demand, the town board granted approval for two new cell site antenna towers on town property — one on Old Northwest Road, and the other at Stephen Hand’s Path in Wainscott, to serve the Route 27 corridor.

The Stephen Hand’s Path site will allow for the use of temporary equipment to fill the coverage gap in the area; the cellular company completes plans and pursues final approvals for a permanent facility at that location, town officials said.

"The town is not a cell phone service provider,” Van Scoyoc said. “While we do have limited authority over the siting of cell tower applications through our land use regulations and review boards, each service provider has their own coverage areas based on a system of antennas that they own/lease and maintain. Because there are numerous cell service providers, and, to date, no coordinated plan to ensure coverage, the existing system is piecemeal at best.”

In addition, the East Hampton town board plans to update the cellular communications town code to reflect changes in Federal Communications Commission regulations for wireless communications companies. With FCC regulations overriding local town codes in many areas, the town has limited ability to regulate or compel action by cellular service companies, Van Scoyoc said.

“I understand the frustration of dropped calls and the potential harm of not having service in an emergency. We will continue to press forward to resolve these issues,” Van Scoyoc said. “The challenge will be to balance the demand for better service, which will require more wireless towers or antennas throughout the town, with the need to protect our rural character and landscapes and other concerns often raised by East Hampton residents when new towers are proposed."