STATE Regional Development Minister Tim Whetstone has revealed discussions are under way regarding a funding application for a mobile phone tower at Glenburnie.
This follows Grant District Council submitting an expression of interest for round five of the Commonwealth black spot funding program.
The rural council agreed to contribute $50,000 towards the installation of the Telstra tower, which aims to improve patchy coverage at the Glenburnie Saleyards.
But the local government body has expressed its “disappointment” it has to use ratepayers’ money for what is an “essential service”.
The lack of mobile phone tower coverage at the livestock exchange has fuelled a backlash from farmers, agents and buyers given more than $100m worth of stock flows through the facility each year.
Borderline Speedway officials have also called for a tower to be accelerated as a priority.
In a letter to council, Mr Whetstone rejected claims the co-funding request was inequitable for regional communities.
“The former Labor Government did not prioritise investments in mobile telephone infrastructure in regional South Australia and as a result there are, as previously indicated, some 500 identified black spots across the state,” Mr Whetstone said.
He said the State Government was investing $10m in seeking to leverage Commonwealth and private sector investment in fixing mobile phone coverage in regional South Australia.”
“I look forward to hearing the outcome of the negotiations between the council, mobile network providers and my department and trust that by working collaboratively together we may achieve success when the Commonwealth considers Round 5 applications,” Mr Whetstone added.
“Following the announcement of round four locations in March 2019, I was approached on several occasions by community members and businesses querying what could be done to elevate their black spot for funding consideration.
“It became evident there was some support for making a financial contribution towards fixing black spots, which would help to unlock economic benefits associated with improved telecommunications services.”
He said the expressions of interest process aimed to give a better understanding of the communities’ coverage needs, as well as improving each application’s chances of success under the commonwealth program.
“However, if no communities choose to take advantage of this opportunity, the government of South Australia will negotiate with telecommunications providers on the basis of the list of prioritised sites previously identified in 2018,” the minister said.
All mobile phone black spot sites will be assessed against the funding program’s eligibility criteria, including whether existing coverage at the site is being provided by other mobile providers.
Council has recently installed a Telstra 4G small cell system at the Glenburnie Saleyards to improve coverage.
