Update: Crow Wing Co. Approves Sale of Communications Tower in Ironton

Crow Wing County has approved the sale of a communications tower in Ironton.

The county built the tower in 2012 with communications company CTC because the area had poor coverage. The tower cost roughly $500,000, with costs split between the county and CTC.

Crow Wing County will still have equipment on the tower for public safety radio use, with law enforcement, snow plow drivers, and county maintenance staff being the main users. The sale stipulated that the county would be able to keep the equipment on the tower rent-free.

CTC approached the county last year about a possible sale of the tower, and the county felt it was a good time to sell.

“When approached about divesting ourselves of the tower, as long as we can keep the equipment there, we’re not in the tower business,” said county administrator Tim Houle. “And so I also think this is about freeing up the capital, that is the public’s capital, tied up in a communications tower, and we’re not in the communications tower business. So it gives us our capital back and still meets our operational needs.”

Crow Wing County and CTC will both receive about $875,000 from the sale. The name of the buyer will not be made public until the sale is finalized.

Houle also said that this one-time windfall does not necessarily have to be what replaces the revenue lost due to the Cass County inmate contract ending. Houle said the county would rather replace that missing revenue with a reoccurring revenue stream.

Updated 9:09 a.m. to indicate that the buyer of the tower is not yet public.