Telus plans to construct three new cellphone towers along the North Thompson Valley near Vavenby, Wire Cache and Blue River over the next two to three years, according to company spokesperson Shawn Hall.
Total investment for the three towers, plus two more to be built at Spences Bridge, Long Island Lake and Coldwater River elsewhere in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, will be $2.5 million.
The six towers will fill gaps in service along highways in the regional district, said Hall.
The new towers should mean that the only remaining gap along the highway would be between Blue River and Valemount.
“It’s on our radar, for sure,” the Telus spokesman said of the remaining gap, but he could not say when the company might move to fill it.
The TNRD board of directors recently voted to send a letter of support to Industry Canada for plans by Telus to install the six cell towers.
The directors also asked Industry Canada to consider waiving public consultation for the sites.
The rationale for waiving public consultation would be because Industry Canada only requires those with property within three times the antenna height be consulted. No one lives or owns property anywhere near any of the proposed North Thompson sites.
Of the six proposed sites within the TNRD, only the one in Spences Bridge would be an exception.