Sprints expansion helps other industries

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

An ambitious expansion project by Sprint PCS in Bowling Green and the surrounding region will not only provide its customers with better service, but will create a valuable infrastructural investment for many other carriers who will have the opportunity to locate on Sprint towers.

About $13 million will be invested in Sprints all-digital network by 2006 in the Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee region. That money will be spent erecting as many as 96 new towers. Officials with Sprint said this project is already under way and is 25 percent complete.

The additional coverage and the support needed will require the addition of about 150 employees. Western Kentucky, along with northern Tennessee and all of Indiana outside Indianapolis, will see 12 new franchise stores.

New coverage areas include Natcher Parkway and U.S. 231 from Bowling Green to Owensboro, Hartford, Beaver Dam and Morgantown; Bowling Green to Clarksville and Hopkinsville along U.S. 68 through Auburn, Russellville and Elkton. The coverage area also includes Hodgenville.

Coverage enhancement projects are being planned for routes from Russellville to Clarksville along U.S. 79 through Guthrie and from Scottsville to Bowling Green.

While Sprint is footing the bill for the expansion of its network and coverage, several other carriers will be able to take advantage of the additional towers. Co-locating is a popular method for carriers to share space on towers without having to construct individual towers for every company.

In January, Crown Communication sought to extend the height of two existing communication towers to add Ubiquitel service. Crown operates shared wireless communications sites. Nearly every major wireless carrier is a tenant on sites that are owned or managed by the company.

Tenants include Verizon Wireless, Cingular, T-Mobile, Nextel, Sprint PCS and AT&T Wireless Services, as well as several state and federal government agencies and broadband data service providers.

Similar co-locating opportunities will now be available for a much wider coverage area for most major carriers. The expanded coverage will include data as well as mobile to mobile and emergency operations use.

It should only be a matter of time before the era of dropped calls and barless roaming is gone for good.

In other news …

The agenda of the annual meeting of the Downtown Redevelopment Authority will include electing officers and directors and updating the membership on the DRAs activities over the past year. Board of directors nominees are John Atkerson, Jim Bullington and Mary E. Carpenter. Officer nominees are Brooks Mitchell, chairman; Regina Jackson, vice chairman; Kyda West, secretary; and Bullington, treasurer.

The meeting will be at Mariahs at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday

Camping World recently acquired the assets of Campers Choice, a mail-order business and Internet site that provided accessories and supplies to RV enthusiasts. Camping World will integrate Campers Choice into its catalog and Internet business, which today serves more than 300,000 mail-order and online customers.

Downing-McPeak Vision Centers will sponsor a free, community-wide senior citizen vision screening May 23 in the Glasgow office and May 24 in the Bowling Green office. The screening will check for possible cataracts, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma and other eye problems. The screening is being offered as a public service and to raise awareness about the importance of routine eye care for adults.

The Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce will hold a ribbon cutting for Faithful Friends Pet Crematorium & Memorials at 8141 Nashville Road, at the Rich Pond crossroads, at 2 p.m. Thursday.

The chamber of commerce and The Kiwanis Club of Bowling Green will have a kick-off celebration for President’s Club Platinum Member BB&Ts All-American Soap Box Derby at Phil Moore Park on 7101 Scottsville Road at 11:30 p.m. Thursday.

The chamber of commerce will hold an expansion ribbon cutting for Christ Episcopal Church, 1215 State St., at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

South Central Kentucky Kids on the Block Inc.s Motorcycle Run will be June 18. Contact 842-2259 for more information.

For business tips, announcements or suggestions, call Raed G. Battah 783-3246 or e-mail at rbattah@bgdailynews.com.  Daily News ·813 College St. ·PO Box 90012 ·Bowling Green, KY ·42102 ·270-781-1700