Tax Avoiding Phone Company Wants Mast on Recreation Ground

How's Your Signal? 

Hedge End Town Council has been approached by representatives of a mobile phone company who are looking for a site for a new mast to improve their signal in the "Southampton area".  They have suggested that the Town Council's recreation ground at Woodhouse Lane would be a suitable location (at least from their point of view).  Apparently they are willing to negotiate a rental for the land which would be occupied by their new base station.

At the moment the Council has no real information.  We don't know how tall, what it would look like, how much land it would occupy or how much the phone company would be willing to pay.  Although if their recent performance with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs is typical, we can expect them to drive a hard bargain.

On the down side a mobile phone mast would be an eyesore, would make the recreation ground more cluttered, and might raise concerns amongst the parents of scouts, guides and pre-school children who meet at Baden Powell Lodge.

On the plus side, it would be a new income stream for the Town Council at a time when it is trying to avoid any increase to its council tax precept.  And if you are a customer of a famous tax avoiding multinational mobile phone company based in Newbury, you might get an improved signal.

While the Council is trying to find out a bit more from the company, it would be good to know what people think about whether mobile phones on recs is an appropriate use of public land.


Photo Credit: Tim Parkinson