Verizon cell tower being put on S.O.U. campus

Ashland, Ore.- A new addition to the Southern Oregon University campus could mean better cell service in the area, but not everyone is in favor.

Verizon came to S.O.U. with the idea to put a cell tower on the campus to help improve service in the area. The tower will cost nothing to the university. In fact they will actually be making money from the tower, as it is going to cost Verizon $18,000 a year to have the tower on campus.

The tower will be on top of the campus’s science building, surrounded by a wall. For those concerned about potential health risks from the cell tower or the radiation, Southern Oregon University says they’ve done their research.

“Towers may emit electromagnetic radiation. They do but it’s, these are very long waves. The American Cancer Society has determined that there’s no evidence that they propose a health risk,” S.O.U.’s Joe Mosley explains.

If you have concerns about the tower and would like to voice those, S.O.U. will be holding a community meeting tomorrow at 7 P.M. in the Rogue Rivers Room at the Stevenson Union.

Mosley says, he hopes to have the tower on the S.O.U. campus by the end of this year.