Q/A Regarding Proposed Bell Communications Tower

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How tall will the tower be?

The tower is planned to be 78 meters in height, approximately 250 feet.

What is the reason for the tower?

CRTC had mandated that Bell Canada had to provide service to Northern Ontario residents as a payback to Ontario citizens because of their long standing monopoly on communications and the amount of money collected by Bell over the years. Bell chose the areas to be served by high speed data, and the CRTC set the requirements.

Reason for the location?

The tower is to be placed as close to the water as possible to offer maximum coverage of services to the lake and river.  Secondly, the marina is a central location from which the majority of people access the lake and has serviceable access and power necessary to support a communications tower.  Bell has already signed a 10 year lease with the marina.

Is it possible to have the tower camouflaged as a tree as they do in other areas of the Muskoka’s?

Due to the towers height this is not possible.  Towers camouflaged as trees have a maximum height of 100 feet.

How will the tower be lit as to minimize glare to residents of the lake?

Lighting is dictated by Transport Canada, but the lights will be LED style lights, and the tower will use mirrored shields to deflect light upwards at a 60 degree angle.

Can the site of the existing Rogers tower near the highway be used?

Bell has made requests to co-locate a tower at this location but has never received a response.  Secondly, the tower type and location is not ideal for maximizing signal strength the the lake and river.

How are communication towers electricity requirements backed up, many old towers used diesel generators?

Today’s towers use portal battery back up generator which requires not fuel to be stored on site.

The following are names and addresses of people and organizations you may with to contact to voice your concerns or opinions. Please note that you are calling in reference to the Proposed Bell Communications Tower and make sure to not the site code (W3446 Harris Lake) in your communications. 

  • Industry Canada 
  • Dan Duggan, District Manager for Parry Sound District Office of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources
  • Jane Naworth, Secretary-Treasurer for the Archipelago Area Planning Board
  • Bell Mobility, c/o Haseeb Amirzada
  • Harris Lake Marina

Full Contact Information