The Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska wants to expand internet services in Southeast Alaska. In Petersburg, they plan to do that by building three communications towers, and a 150-foot tower on Mill Road is already being built. Some local community members have expressed surprise and concern about the construction.
In 2022, Tlingit & Haida received nearly $50 million from the federal government to develop high speed internet infrastructure in Southeast. Tlingit & Haida created Tidal Network, an internet service program, which builds broadband infrastructure and offers its own internet plan. Tidal Network also sells Starlink.
In an email on Nov. 20, Tlingit & Haida Spokesperson Dixie Hutchinson wrote that Tidal Network wants to bring high quality internet to tribal citizens and their broader communities. Tidal Network officials were not available for an interview.
In 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) gave tribes the opportunity to apply for broadband licences over tribal land. Many tribes in Alaska applied for that license. Tidal Network subleases that broadband spectrum from tribes in Southeast Alaska, including the Petersburg Indian Association.
According to Hutchinson, Tidal Network creates all of the infrastructure that’s required for their broadband services, “including cell towers.” She wrote that Tidal Network’s towers also have space for other cell providers and emergency response equipment.
Hutchinson wrote that Tidal Network has plans for three towers in Petersburg: one on Haugen Drive near the fire station, one on Mill Road, and one at the Flower Farm at Papke’s Landing. The tower on Mill Road is already being built.
Some community members in Petersburg have expressed confusion and concern about the projects.
At the Nov. 17 borough assembly meeting, Tom Kowalski said he lives near Mill Road, and was surprised to hear construction nearby.
“This past Saturday, I heard some construction noise on the next road over Mill Road, right behind my house,” Kowalski said. “Come to find out they’re building a cell phone tower. It’s 250 feet from my property.”
According to the building permit obtained by KFSK, Tidal Network applied to the borough on Oct. 14 to build a tower on the Mill Road property, privately owned by Tlingit & Haida. The tower would be 150 feet tall, with an elevated steel platform, and surrounded by a fence. The borough approved the application the next day.
In her Nov. 20 email, Hutchinson wrote, “Tower stacking is scheduled for next week.”
Kowalski testified that he didn’t know that Tidal Network planned to build a tower near his neighborhood.
“I was shocked. I had no idea this was coming,” Kowalski said. “And yeah, maybe I live under a rock, A lot of us here do. That’s why we live here. But I got no notification. I had no idea what’s going on.”
At a meeting hosted by community members on Nov. 20, other residents near and on Mill Road shared that they did not receive notice either.
Petersburg resident Mika Cline has testified publicly multiple times about her concerns regarding Tidal Network’s towers. In an interview with KFSK, Cline said she often receives calls from community members who didn’t know about any plans to build towers in Petersburg.
“I think the biggest concern is that people feel like they’re getting these cell towers with no input whether they want them or not,” Cline said. “Nobody has any information that it’s even happening, and they don’t get a say in it.
According to the borough’s Community Development Director, Liz Cabrera, the lot on Mill Road is industrially zoned, and the borough allows commercial communication towers in those zones. Builders only have to provide construction plans and apply for a building permit. There is no public hearing requirement for building permits.
In an email, Hutchinson wrote that, “before tower construction begins, Tidal Network complies with federal regulations from the FCC [Federal Communications Commission], NTIA [National Telecommunications and Information Administration], and the State Historic Preservation Office to ensure safety, environmental protection, and cultural resource preservation.”
Tidal Network is also in the process of buying a borough-owned lot on Haugen Drive. The Planning and Zoning Commission approved Tidal Network’s application with a 4-1 vote in August. The borough assembly unanimously agreed to proceed with the land sale in September. The property still needs to be subdivided and assessed before the borough can negotiate the sale; the contract will return to the assembly for final approval.
Hutchinson wrote that Tidal Network bought the Flower Farm property this year in order to build a tower there. That property is in the Papkes Landing neighborhood, about 10 miles south of town. She said that the flower farm infrastructure is still on the lot.
Unlike both the Mill Road and Haugen lots, the Flower Farm property is outside of Petersburg’s zoning authority.
Some towns in Southeast have pushed back against proposed towers in their communities. According to reporting from KCAW in Sitka, in October, a judge rejected Tidal Network’s request for a height variance to build a 120-foot tower in a residential neighborhood. Wrangell’s planning and zoning commission also rejected a 230-foot Tidal Network tower earlier this month, which was 13 miles out of town, according to the Wrangell Sentinel. Wrangell currently has one completed Tidal Network tower three miles from town.
Multiple Petersburg assembly members have expressed that they’re aware of community concerns around the construction of the towers.
The assembly originally rejected Assembly Member Jeff Meucci’s request on Nov. 3 to have an open work session with Tidal Network in a 5-2 vote, but at their Nov. 17 meeting, some assembly members said they would be interested in discussing the towers more.
In an email, Hutchinson wrote that Tidal Network will be hosting a community meeting in Petersburg on Tuesday, Dec. 16. The location for the meeting is still being determined.
“Tlingit & Haida President Richard Peterson and other team members will be present to listen to the community,” she wrote.
