Sarah Boyett and Tom Black hope to stop plans for a 196-foot cell phone tower on the property of Trixi's in Ovando. The proposed tower would be similar to the tower pictured; it was recently erected just off Highway 200 near Roundup. Photo by LINDA THOMPSON/Missoulian

OVANDO - As cellular phone companies expand coverage to rural communities and motorists who demand reliable service along remote stretches of highway, western Montana's mountainscape is bristling with monolythic towers.

Spotty cell reception is still evident, though, particularly in the Blackfoot Valley on Highway 200, east of Bonner, and service providers have honed in on these “dead zones.”

The 195-foot towers - about the height of a 20-story building - have recently sprung up near the Roundup fishing access site, as well as in Condon, Potomac, Gold Creek, Seeley Lake, Avon, Garrison, Deer Lodge and Lincoln.

West of Missoula, tower proposals are pending in the Huson and Ninemile areas, and farther west, near Alberton. Other cell towers have been proposed at historic Travelers' Rest State Park and at Clearwater Junction. By far the most controversial site proposal is directly adjacent to the parking lot at Trixi's Antler Saloon in Ovando, where a “not-in-my-backyard” faction of residents has vigorously protested the plan since August 2008, igniting petition drives to relocate the proposed tower. “We don't want it to be sour grapes,” said Ovando resident Tom Black. “We have nothing against the technology, we have nothing against another tower in the valley. We just don't want it at Trixi's.” Black is part of a group of folks in Ovando who don't agree with the proposed tower's placement, viewing it as an eyesore and worrying about decreased property values, the issue of medical helicopter landings and the use of an LED light piercing the night sky. Their request is to place it in a less obtrusive location. “It's so garish and industrial that when you juxtapose the tower with a town like Ovando, which we like to call the Jewel of the Blackfoot, I mean, there's nothing in Ovando that's more than two stories high,” said resident Sara Boyett. “It is, to me, a crying shame.” The flap over the controversial Trixi's tower came to a head in March after eight months of debate about putting the tower at a range of out-of-the-way sites in the area. “There were plenty of suggestions for alternative sites, but none fit Clearview's stated purposes and goals, which was to provide as much coverage on Highway 200 and provide in-house coverage to Ovando,” said Michael Strand, a telecommunications attorney hired by Clearview Tower Co. of Huson. Although other potential sites were identified, Strand said the tower company identified Trixi's as the best location. “We came down to seven sites that were likely possibilities,” Strand said. “Of those seven, only two provided open-air handset coverage and automobile coverage, but only Trixi's gave the in-house building coverage in Ovando. The others just didn't have the signal strength to cut it.” The Trixi's venture was supported by the bar's owners, Ray and Cindy Francis, who agreed to lease their property for 20 years. “We get a small fee for leasing the property,” said Ray Francis. “Here at Trixi's, we lose money six to eight months out of the year, and with the economy down, we've been down. That bit of income would help us out a lot, but there's a few people just think [the tower] would be ugly.” But beginning in August 2008, the Powell County Planning Board, faced with opposition from a growing number of Ovando residents, repeatedly tabled the Trixi's tower proposal, saying Clearview needed to present firm documentation that the alternate sites would not serve its purpose. “You are telling us you have two alternate sites and they don't work, but you don't have any documentation,” Powell County Attorney Lewis Smith said at the final meeting on March 5. The Planning Board had 35 working days to make a final decision on the site, but instead passed a motion to grant the conditional use permit for the tower at Trixi's. “Part of it, I think, was fatigue,” says Boyett. Leading the charge on behalf of more than 40 other Ovando residents, Black and Boyett appealed the planning board's decision in April, arguing that it erred in accepting Clearview Tower Co.'s opinion about shortcomings related to the alternate sites - namely, that Trixi's is the only location where a tower would provide adequate coverage to highway motorists, Ovando residents and businesses alike. Last month, the Powell County Board of Adjustment affirmed the county planning board's original decision to approve the conditional use permit for the tower. But why, Black and Boyett wondered, would a community like Ovando, with just 60 homes in the whole outlying area, be so coveted by a cellular provider, in this case Cellular One? “In everybody's cell bill, a certain percentage goes toward a fund for a federal grant,” explained Billy Ray, owner of Clearview Tower, a Huson company set to build the proposed tower at Trixi's. “Carriers go after that money, but they have to maintain a certain percentage of in-building coverage in order to get it. There's no revenue in Ovando, so why put $300,000 into a cell site? It only makes sense because you get this grant money.” Ray figures he's built about 70 cell towers between Missoula and Miles City, including the sites in Condon and Potomac. The tower in Potomac has even earned praise for its subterfuge, blending in against the mountainous background of ponderosa pine. “They asked me to paint it ponderosa pine so it would match the mountains, so I painted it,” Ray said. “You don't notice it unless you're really looking.” Ray said he has already sunk $40,000 into the Trixi's site because of the costly federal licensing process. He also has hired consultants to conduct “propagation studies” that measure the strength of cell signals in the areal, and must gain separate approval from the State Historic Preservation Board and the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Despite the investment, Ray said last week that he's still not totally committed to the Trixi's site. “I live here in Montana and I want people to get along,” he said. “But all of that property surrounding Ovando is conservation easement, and there are very few places to get in-building coverage and highway coverage. I'm heading out to look at another piece of property right now, though.” Philip Maechling, Missoula's historic preservation officer, said he works with providers to mitigate the impacts of a tower on historic resources. All providers have an obligation to comply with the National Historic Preservation Act, he said. In negotiating the Potomac tower, Maechling explained to Ray that it would need to be built a considerable distance from the Potomac School, a building that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Maechling also suggested that, if the tower is built against the Garnet Mountain Range, it be painted the same color as ponderosa or pine bark. “It meets the provider's needs because it's out of the trees from a physical standpoint, but it's not silhouetted against the skyline,” Maechling said. “It's kind of a deep, rusty color that just falls into the forest color palette. So that's a way of mitigating the impact.” Maechling also has told providers that some sites just weren't feasible and would never be licensed. “Somebody came in and wanted to put a cell tower at the gateway to the Rattlesnake Wilderness Area, and I said I didn't think that would fly,” he said. “There's also a disagreement in the works over the tower proposal at Travelers' Rest.” Maechling says negotiations have mostly been smooth, due in part to a Missoula city ordinance passed in 2004 that says cell towers must preserve the view. Still, it's hard to predict what cellular providers have in mind for the future of the valley. “My own preference is that the cell industry would actually have a progress plan,” Maechling said. “But providers aren't interested in showing their cards, so they are trying to beat each other at the siting game. I suppose it's simply healthy competition, but it's hard for us because it becomes a moving target.” Based on their recent experiences, Black and Boyett say their impression is that providers look for the cheapest tower sites without any concern for the aesthetics of a community. “Pretty soon, you're not going to be able to drive from Missoula to Lincoln without seeing a cell tower every three miles,” Black said. “They've come in and put a big old stick in the eye of the valley,” Boyett said. Ray Francis says the benefits outweigh the eyesore, saying motorists regularly walk into his bar asking to use the phone to report an accident on the highway. “We want it in, and at this point, it's a go-ahead,” Francis said. “There's a few people who are really against it because of the visual aspect, but a lot of people want it because it would cover our area and because of the safety factor. I think the nay-sayers can still appeal it again and it would go to court.” “But it's the future. It's going to come,” Francis added. “This is the 21st century and that's just the way things are going to go.” Reporter Tristan Scott can be reached at (406) 523-5264 or at tscott@missoulian.com.