6.1. & 6.2. SR 10-21-1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Wireless Communication Antenna Site Elk River, Minnesota Page 3 The Cellular Phone System. Users of cellular telephone service include members of the business community as well as the public sector. Commuters, doctors, salespeople, business owners and executives all benefit by using cellular phones. Additionally, cellular telephones are used extensively by fire, police, and other public safety officials and departments. The system allows police and others to conduct discreet communication in the field, and it enables direct communication with individuals in need of assistance even when a traditional telephone is unavailable. Cellular phone users can contact "911" to report accidents, fires, or other emergencies without first having to search for a telephone. Mr. James R. Beutelspacher, 9-1-1 Project Manager for Minnesota, wrote that "the unimpeded growth of cellular service is an important adjunct to 9-1-1 emergency reporting.". Cellular is a low-power system. The amount of energy generated from a single cellular phone channel is approximately 100 watts. This is less energy than is generated by the typical cordless telephone which is used in many homes today. The Question of Interference. The cellular phone system operates on a specific set of channels set aside by the Federal Communications Commission. The filtering of spurious signals is very tightly controlled. Cellular telephones operate within a strictly regulated set of allotted frequencies between 825 and 845 megahertz (MHz) and between 870 and 890 MHz. AT&T Wireless Services is currently licensed to operate in over 100 major markets nationwide with hundreds of antennas. There has not been any instance of television or radio interference reported. All AT&T Wireless Services sites must be operated in accordance with our FCC license to provide cellular service in this area. Mr. Albert S. Jarratt, Jr., Engineer in Charge of the St. Paul Field Office, Field Operations Bureau of the FCC, confirmed that the FCC has not received any complaints of interference by cellular phone transmissions with home electronic entertainment equipment in any of the five states in which Mr. Jarratt's office has jurisdiction. The Cellular Grid. Cellular service provides subscribers with highly portable phone service by developing a grid of radio cells arranged in a geographically hexagonal pattern. Each "cell" is created by an antenna which serves as the link between the customer and the system while the customer is within that particular cell. As callers move from one cell to the next, their calls are switched, or "handed off," to the next cell's antenna site.