School sends cease and desist letter to Verizon

Cites failure to pull state permit

By Katherine Nettles

It appears Verizon has not yet obtained a needed permit as part of its process for the cell tower construction located on the Gunnison High School campus. This has led Gunnison Watershed School District superintendent Leslie Nichols to send a “cease and desist” warning letter to the company.

Nichols updated the school board on February 25 about the controversial Verizon cell antennae/light tower project. She said she had recently inquired with the state regarding a required permit Verizon had not obtained as of the last board meeting. Nichols said it turned out Verizon still had not acquired the permit, so the school district’s legal counsel then sent a formal notification to cease and desist, via certified mail, to Verizon.

The letter states, “On February 4, 2019, Dr. Nichols learned that Verizon did not have the permit and asked Verizon to obtain the permit immediately. Despite the urgency of Dr. Nichols’s request, Verizon still has not obtained the permit. Notwithstanding this fact, Verizon continues to conduct construction activities on the Premises and is now refusing to respond to Dr. Nichols on this issue.

“For these reasons, and in accordance with Sections 22 and 26 of the Lease, this letter serves as formal notice that Verizon has failed to perform its obligations under Section 7 of the Lease by failing to obtain the requisite state permit,” the letter continues. “This letter also serves as a demand that Verizon immediately cease all construction activities on the Premises unless and until it obtains such permit.”

The letter then triggers a 30-day period during which Verizon can address the problem. If Verizon fails to obtain the permit on or before March 27, 2019, the letter states, “then Verizon shall be in default of the Lease and the School District shall proceed with all remedies available to it at law and under the Lease.”

The letter further states that the school district is “extremely disappointed in Verizon’s failure to perform under the Lease. Verizon’s construction of the Facility on the Premises has become extremely controversial within the School District community and Verizon has been largely uncooperative in the School District’s efforts to engage with the community on this issue. Verizon’s failure to secure a necessary permit has significantly eroded the School District’s trust in Verizon and will only add to the community’s concerns about the Facility.”

Nichols told the school board that the only other update she had on the cell tower project for the time being was that she had also recently had a conversation with several concerned community members regarding the potential for cell tower relocation to a substation on South Boulevard in Gunnison. She said no other action has been taken on that.

As for the cease and desist, Nichols said, “We will see if that gets Verizon to take action on this permit. I spoke strongly with Verizon on February 3. I haven’t heard from them since February 6.”