Reaching the Skies: Types of Cellphone Towers

When people talk about cell phone towers, they usually picture large structures akin to telephone poles, but without the wires. This is quite an apt description, although cell phone towers are much more complex than that. Given the sheer variety of cell phone towers, property owners who are interested in entering cell phone tower lease agreements would do well to learn about the spatial requirements for each type of tower.

Monopole towers, which are quite common, stand at about 100 to 200 ft. These towers are used primarily for telephony functions and can be integrated in most residential neighborhoods. Lattice towers, meanwhile, are about 200 to 300 ft. tall and usually have a three-sided base. Guyed towers, which can reach about 2,000 ft., are supported by numerous wires and require lots of space.

Meanwhile, some telecom companies prefer to be discreet and build so-called concealed or stealth towers that blend in with their surroundings and adhere to local building regulations. Church spires, flag poles, and billboards are good examples of such structures. While stealth towers can be built anywhere, however, they are usually more expensive to set up and often don’t provide the same level of coverage as other cell phone towers.