C Squared Systems, LLC 65 Dartmouth Drive Auburn, NH 03032 Phone: (603) 644 00 support@csquaredsystems.com RF Report Proposed Wireless Facility 414 Main Street, Cotuit, MA 02635 August 17, 2017
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Overview... 1 2. Introduction... 2 3. Coverage & Capacity Objectives... 3 4. Site Search Selection Process and Alternate Candidates Evaluation... 4 5. Pertinent Site Data... 5 6. Coverage Analysis and Propagation Plots... 5 7. Height Analysis... 7 8. Alternate Technologies... 7 8. Summary... 8 10. Statement of Certification... 9 11. Exhibits... 10 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Site Information Used in Coverage Analysis... 5 Table 2: Height Analysis Coverage Data... 7 EXHIBITS Exhibit 1: Network and Neighbor Sites... 11 Exhibit 2: Existing 1900 MHz LTE Coverage... 12 Exhibit 3: 1900 MHz LTE Coverage - Water Tank Off-Air... 13 Exhibit 4: 1900 MHz LTE Coverage with Proposed Replacement Facility... 14 Exhibit 5: Terrain View... 15 Exhibit 6: FCC Licenses - County... 16 C Squared Systems, LLC i August 17, 2017
1. Overview Corporation (herein referred to as ) provides the following information in support of the application to the Cape Cod Commission for approval to collocate on the proposed Centerline Communications tower wireless communications facility, on the property at 414 Main Street in Cotuit, MA, (Parcel ID Map 038, Block 004) herein referred to as the Facility. The above mentioned location is in an area where currently provides wireless services from its existing facility located on the nearby water tank on the same property. At the request of the Cotuit Water Department,, along with all other wireless operators currently utilizing the water tank as an antenna mounting structure, must relocate its existing facility to a new location capable of preserving or improving the services currently being provided by the existing facility. Collocation on the proposed Centerline Communications proposed 170-foot monopole will enable to sustain the coverage and capacity currently being provided by to Cotuit and the Town of from the existing water tank facility. These areas include, but are not limited to, Road (Route ), Main Street, Old Mill/Sampson Road, School Street, Old Oyster Road, Santuit Road, Bridge Street and the surrounding roads, neighborhoods, and community areas. is licensed by the FCC to provide wireless communications services throughout the Northeast Region including County and the Town of and is currently providing 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) service to the area from their existing facilities on the water tank, located on the same property. The existing 170-foot water tank structure, owned by the Cotuit fire District Water Department, currently supports s nine panel antennas and nine Remote Radio Heads (RRH s), along with the associated fiber and coaxial cables connecting their antennas and RRH s to their base station equipment. This report addresses s need for the proposed Facility at the Site and confirms that there are no existing structures, buildings or towers within the Town or neighboring communities that could be utilized to meet s coverage objectives for this area. is proposing to relocate their 4G LTE antennas and associated equipment from the existing water tank to the proposed 170-foot monopole at a centerline height of 157 feet (the same centerline currently used on the water tank) and to incorporate additional 4G LTE equipment during the transition, which will enable them to utilize their 800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2.5 GHz spectrums, as allocated by the FCC. Included in this package is: a brief summary of the Facility s objectives, exhibits showing s current network plan and predicted Radio Frequency coverage from the Facility at the Site and the surrounding sites in s network. Also included in this report are a brief summary of the Site s objectives and pertinent site information regarding the surrounding telecommunications facilities used to generate the coverage plots attached hereto. C Squared Systems, LLC 1 August 17, 2017
2. Introduction provides digital communications voice and data services using 4 th Generation (4G) LTE technology in the 800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2.5 GHz frequency bands, as allocated by the FCC. 1 As part of 's network expansion and enhancement on the Cape and elsewhere in the United States, their 4G LTE data networks are used by mobile devices for fast web browsing, media streaming, and other applications that require broadband connections. The mobile devices that benefit from these advanced data networks are not limited to basic handheld phones, but also include devices such as smartphones, PDA s, tablets, and laptop air-cards. Since the launch of their 4G LTE services and devices, customers now have even faster connections to people, information, and entertainment. Due to the terrain characteristics and the distance between the targeted coverage area in Cotuit and 's existing sites, s options are quite limited to address ongoing capacity needs and sustaining the existing LTE coverage in the target area. s network requires the strategic deployment of antenna structures throughout the area to be covered, which are connected to receivers and transmitters that operate in a limited geographic area known as a cell. Mobile subscriber handsets and wireless devices operate by transmitting and receiving low power radio frequency signals to and from these cell sites. The signals are transferred through ground telephone lines (or other means of backhaul transport) and routed to their destinations by sophisticated electronic equipment. The size of the area served by each cell site is dependent on several factors including the number of antennas used, the height at which the antennas are deployed, the topography of the surrounding land, vegetative cover, and natural or man-made obstructions in the area. As customers move throughout the service area, the transmission from the portable device is automatically transferred to the facility with the best reception, without interruption in service, provided that there is overlapping coverage between the cells. In order for s network to function effectively, there must be adequate overlapping coverage between the serving cell and "adjoining cells". This not only allows access to the network, but once connected allows for the transfer or hand-off of calls from one cell to another, and prevents involuntary disconnections or dropped calls. s antennas also must be located high enough above ground level to allow transmission (a.k.a. propagation) of the radio frequency signals above trees, buildings and other natural or man-made structures that may obstruct or diminish the signals. Areas without adequate radio frequency coverage have substandard service characterized by poor voice quality, dropped and blocked calls, slow data connections and transmissions, or no wireless service at all. These areas are commonly referred to as coverage gaps. Each cell site must be primarily designed to strike a balance between the overall geographic coverage area it will serve, and the site s capacity to support the usage within the coverage footprint. In rural areas, cell sites are generally designed to have broader coverage footprints because the potential traffic is sparser and distributed over a larger area. In more densely populated suburban and urban environments or, areas with heavy vehicular traffic volume, the capacity to handle calls and data transmissions is of increasing concern, and cell sites must limit their coverage footprint to an area where the offered network traffic can be supported by the radio equipment and resources. Due to the aggressive historical and projected growth of mobile usage, particularly for mobile data (51% in 2014-2015, 47% CAGR 2014-2019 in North America) 2, instances arise where the usage demand can no longer be supported by the site(s) serving an area, and new facilities must be integrated to provide capacity relief to the overloaded sites. 1 Reference Attachments Exhibit 6: sprint Corporation FCC Licenses 2 Cisco Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast Update, 2014-2019, February 3, 2015, Cisco Systems, Inc. C Squared Systems, LLC 2 August 17, 2017
Our analysis shows that by collocating on the proposed wireless communication facility at 414 Main Street, at an antenna centerline height of 157, will be able to preserve and sustain the existing level of service being provided to the majority of its subscribers within and the Village of Cotuit, with improved coverage and capacity to most residents, businesses, and traffic corridors and only minimal degradation of service to some existing subscribers on the periphery of the targeted area. 3. Coverage & Capacity Objectives As mentioned above, currently provides 4G LTE voice and data wireless services to the subject area using their existing facility on the Cotuit Water Tank. As also noted above, the new Facility will allow to replicate their existing 4G footprints with minimal negative impact on their current customers in the area. In order to define the extent of the coverage gap to be filled, both propagation modeling and real-world drive testing has been conducted in the subject area of Cotuit and/or areas in County having similar topography. Propagation modeling uses PC software to determine the network coverage based on the specific technical parameters of each site including but not limited to: location, ground elevation, antenna models, antenna heights, and databases of terrain and ground cover in the area. Drive testing consists of traveling along area roadways in a vehicle equipped with a sophisticated setup of test devices that collect a variety of network performance metrics. The data is then postprocessed and utilized to tune the predictive models used in the generation the coverage plots and the delineation of the coverage gaps. As a result of this effort, determined that without a replacement site of comparable height, a significant gap in 4G LTE coverage will exist within the Village of Cotuit and the Town of. Specifically, along substantial portions of the Town s roads listed below and subsequently, within the residential and commercial properties adjacent to these roads, including but not limited to: Road (Route ), Main Street, Old Mill/Sampson Road, School Street, Old Oyster Road, Santuit Road, Bridge Street on Osterville Garand Island, The surrounding roads, neighborhoods, and community areas that lie adjacent to the above noted roadways The above areas are herein referred to as the Target Area. While holds licenses in the 800 MHz (Cellular), 1900 MHz (PCS), 2.5 GHz (BRS) bands, this report focuses on the 1900 MHz coverage since it is this spectrum layers that is representative of the 4G LTE service most readily available to subscribers in Cotuit and is the layer that is essential to s ability to address the coverage and capacity needs for their 4G LTE service offering. It is relevant to note that the 800 MHz coverage layer, which http://www.cisco.com/en/us/solutions/collateral/ns341/ns525/ns537/ns705/ns827/white_paper_c11-520862.pdf C Squared Systems, LLC 3 August 17, 2017
serves as the base layer for the LTE service, has a substantially larger coverage footprint due to the propagation characteristics of the frequency band. The 1900 MHz overlay layers will have incrementally smaller footprints and are used by the carrier to manage capacity. It should also be noted that in addition to providing service to the residential and community areas of Cotuit and network connectivity, is providing enhanced services for Public Safety and meeting E911 compliance for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 4. Site Search Selection Process and Alternate Candidates Evaluation To find a site that provides acceptable service and fills the significant gaps in coverage, computer modeling software is used to define a search area which then generates a search ring. The search ring identifies the area within which a site could be located (assuming that sufficient height is used) that would have a high probability of meeting the coverage and capacity objectives established by the 's RF (Radio Frequency) engineers. Once a search ring is determined, s real estate specialists search within the defined area for existing buildings, smokestacks, towers and other structures of sufficient height that would meet the defined objectives. If none are found, then the focus shifts to raw land sites. Even if a site meets the technical objectives established by the RF engineers it can still be rejected if it does not meet the requirements of the Real Estate and Construction departments. Every effort is made to use existing structures before pursuing a raw land build to minimize the number of towers throughout the municipalities being served. currently utilizes structures within Cotuit, and the surrounding towns for their wireless facilities. To provide a replacement facility that would preserve the existing coverage footprint and minimize any adverse effect on its subscribers, the planned Centerline Communications tower on the Cotuit Water Department property is the most viable solution. With respect to the use of existing telephone and electric utility structures as an alternative to the proposed tower, distributed antennas systems ( DAS ) are generally lower power, low gain systems used in high traffic areas (i.e. capacity demand) which rely on a combination of fiber optics, transmitting antenna sites and a base station facility. The service requirements in this area of Cotuit relate to coverage on a macro level as opposed to a discrete system such as a DAS network. Given the foregoing, alternate technologies were not investigated due to the area of required coverage improvement. Likewise, there were no existing structures available in the Town that would satisfy s coverage requirements for this area. As a result, determined that the proposed monopole at 414 Main Street is the only feasible and least intrusive solution to meeting the coverage objectives of this search area. C Squared Systems, LLC 4 August 17, 2017
5. Pertinent Site Data Table 1 below details the site-specific information used to perform the coverage and capacity analyses and generate the coverage plots and the associated POP, area, and road counts provided herein. Site Id Site Address Town Latitude Longitude Support Height (ft.) Structure Status BS03XC310 568 Oak St (Mid-Cape Highway) 41.68516-70.35766 190 Rooftop On-air 129 Industrial Drive 41.60377-70.48872 46 Self Support On-air BS03XC314 Robbie Rd Sandwich 41.73361-70.486 276 Self Support On-air BS13XC594 Spacious Rd Sandwich 41.70867-70.42706 213 Monopole On-air BS13XC661 1047 Rd 41.65895-70.32578 59 Monopole On-air 414 Main St Cotuit 41.62905-70.44163 56 Water Tower On-air BS23XC582 E Highway 41.58178-70.53916 23 Monopole On-air BS23XC583 Pleasaant Wood Drive Sandwich 41.69742-70.50758 148 Water Tower On-air BS23XC584 Grandville Ave 41.64209-70.52433 108 Water Tower On-air BS23XC753 Solstice Lane 41.65916-70.40014 62 Self Support On-air BS43XC905 1010 Old Rd 41.57914-70.56861 36 Self Support On-air BS73XC029 330 Old Stagecoach Rd 41.65860-70.35190 59 Water Tower On-air 414 Main St Cotuit 41.62905-70.44163 170 Monopole Proposed Table 1: Site Information Used in Coverage Analysis 3 6. Coverage Analysis and Propagation Plots The radio frequency coverage plots provided in this report show s 4G coverage in the 1900 MHz frequency range. The plots were produced using decibel Planner, a Windows-based RF propagation computer modeling program and network planning tool. The software takes into account the geographical features of an area, land cover, antenna models, antenna heights, RF transmitting power and receiver thresholds to predict coverage and other related RF parameters used in site design and wireless network expansion. The plots included as Exhibits show coverage based on the minimum required signal strength needed to support reliable 4G LTE service in this area. All other areas (depicted in white) fall within unreliable 4G coverage areas and may be characterized by poor voice and data quality, slow data speeds, latency 4 and the substantial likelihood of unreliable service. The star symbols represent existing and proposed site locations. 3 Some sites listed in this table are outside the plot view but are included for completeness of information. 4 In data transfer it is the delay or lapse in the time between initiating a request from the wireless device and receiving the response. C Squared Systems, LLC 5 August 17, 2017
Exhibits 1 through 5 included in this report are discussed below: Exhibit 1 titled: Cotuit WT Relo Network and Neighbor Sites provides a zoomed-out view of the subject area showing the locations of s existing sites in the Town, relative to the proposed Site, and other sites in neighboring towns that may be contributing to the aggregate coverage in Cotuit, and eastern. Exhibit 2 titled: Cotuit WT Relo - Existing 1900 MHz LTE Coverage shows the 4G LTE coverage that is currently being provided to Cotuit and the Town of from the existing water tank facility and the surrounding on-air sites listed in Table 1 above. The green areas represent the minimum desired level of coverage for this area, whereas the orange areas represent a slightly lower signal strength. The deficient areas of coverage are defined by the unshaded or white areas. Exhibit 3 titled: Cotuit WT Relo - 1900 MHz Coverage with Water Tank Off- Air shows the aggregate coverage of just the surrounding sites and the increased gap in coverage created with the existing Cotuit Water Tank site off the air. As shown in this exhibit, a substantial gap in coverage will exist in s network without a replacement site. Exhibit 4 titled: Cotuit WT Relo - 1900 MHz Coverage with Proposed Replacement Facility shows the replacement coverage achieved by relocating the facility to the planned tower at a centerline height of 157 feet. A comparison of this exhibit and Exhibit 2 essentially shows the preservation of the existing coverage, with some subtle improvements and degradations to specific areas on the periphery of the Facility s footprint. Exhibit 5 titled: MA2549 Cotuit Relo - Area Terrain Map is provided to show how the terrain features play a key role in defining the unique coverage achieved from a given location and site selection. It highlights the dynamic ground elevations for this area of Cotuit and, relative to the existing and proposed site locations. Exhibit 6 titled: FCC Licenses - County is a table showing the licensed Call Signs and associated frequencies allocated by the FCC. C Squared Systems, LLC 6 August 17, 2017
7. Height Analysis Based on the predictive coverage models and the information identified in this report, it is my professional opinion that in order for to preserve its existing coverage at the proposed Facility they must maintain the same antenna centerline height they currently hold on the water tank (156 feet). Furthermore, quantitative analysis shows that a twenty-foot reduction in the height would result in a substantial decrease in covered POP s, area and roads for, as detailed in Table 2 below. Incremental Coverage from Relo Site 1900 MHz LTE (In-building Suburban Threshold) RSRP Threshold 157 ft 137 ft Delta % Decrease Population Coverage: ( -100.9 dbm) 2,193 1,763-430 19.6% Area Covered (mi 2 ): ( -100.9 dbm) 3.68 3.08-0.60 16.3% Incremental Coverage from Relo Site 1900 MHz LTE (Rural Indoor Threshold) RSRP Threshold 157 ft 137 ft Delta % Decrease Population Coverage: ( -109.5 dbm) 4,744 4,109-635 13.4% Area Covered (mi 2 ): ( -109.5 dbm) 6.59 5.78-0.81 12.3% Main: 10 9-0.9 9.4% Roadway Coverage (mi): Secondary: 62.91 54.7-8.21 13.1% Total: 73 64-9.2 12.5% Table 2: Height Analysis Coverage Data 5 Given the evolution of wireless technology since first activated their cellular facility on the water tank in 1999, and the growing demand for wireless and broadband services, maintaining the centerline at this location is key to s ability to provide the level of coverage needed and meet the service expectations of their wireless and broadband customers. Any reduction in antenna height on the new tower will negatively impact s legacy subscribers and limit its ability to provide coverage to its current subscribers, most notably those on the periphery of the Facility s footprint. 8. Alternate Technologies The area where service is needed in this application is a wide area of poor or no service. Microcells or repeaters are better suited to small areas for fill in use and/or commercial in-building service, such as stadiums, large office complexes, university campuses and transportation tunnels. Repeaters offer no added capacity for the network, and require a line of site donor facility which can be difficult in the defining terrain of the area. For these reasons, they are not a viable solution in addressing the coverage gap that would result with the decommissioning of the water tank facility. 5 Population counts are based upon 2010 U.S. Census residential data. Please note that this does not include any employee or visitor counts in the area. C Squared Systems, LLC 7 August 17, 2017
8. Summary has determined that without a viable replacement for the existing facility on the water tank, significant gaps will exist within its 4G LTE network in the Village of Cotuit and the Town of. In order to minimize the number of new towers in the area, focused on collocating their LTE facility on the planned Centerline Communications tower. Due to the topographical features of the area and the location of the surrounding facilities, no existing structures were found that could meet the coverage and capacity objectives for this area. Based on the terrain features and land cover in the area of concern, determined that the proposed Facility, located at 414 Main Street would be the best solution to meeting their network needs. It is uniquely suited because of its proposed height and location relative to the existing water tank facility, the targeted coverage areas and surrounding terrain and, will enable to substantially preserve their existing 4G and broadband services with relative transparency to their customers. Without a wireless facility at this site, at the 157 height requested, significant gaps in service will exist within the Village of Cotuit and the Town of, and the identified public need for reliable wireless services in this area will not be met. C Squared Systems, LLC 8 August 17, 2017
10. Statement of Certification I certify to the best of my knowledge that the statements in this report are true and accurate. Dan Goulet August 17, 2017 C Squared Systems, LLC Date C Squared Systems, LLC 9 August 17, 2017
11. Exhibits C Squared Systems, LLC 10 August 17, 2017
% &% $# & 2.9 mi. 5.0 mi. 3.0 mi. 4.4 mi. 0 1 2 miles North Bay Cotuit Bay West Bay 149 149 151 151 0 0 0 Symbol Key Existing Site Proposed Site Exhibit 1: Cotuit WT Relo - Network & Neighbor Sites Site Data Site: (WT) Lat: 41-37-44.59 N Long: 70-26-29.88 W CL: 156 Ft. GE: 60 Ft.
Exhibit 2: Cotuit WT Relo - Existing 1900 MHz LTE Coverage Site Data Site: (WT) Lat: 41-37-44.59 N Long: 70-26-29.88 W GE: 60 Ft. CL: 156 Ft. Plot Information 1900 MHz LTE & % 130 Symbol Key Existing Site Proposed Site Coverage Key Greater than -100.9 dbm < -100.9 >= -109.5 dbm Less than -109.5 dbm Coverage Key Greater than -85dBm $# WT 156 Feet 186 Feet Cotuit Bay $# North Bay West Bay 0 0.5 1 miles
Exhibit 3: Cotuit WT - 1900 MHz LTE Coverage with Water Tank Off-Air Site Data Site: (WT) Lat: 41-37-44.59 N Long: 70-26-29.88 W GE: 60 Ft. CL: 156 Ft. Plot Information 1900 MHz LTE & % 130 Symbol Key Existing Site Proposed Site Coverage Key Greater than -100.9 dbm < -100.9 >= -109.5 dbm Less than -109.5 dbm Coverage Key Greater than -85dBm $# WT 156 Feet 186 Feet Cotuit Bay $# North Bay West Bay 0 0.5 1 miles
Exhibit 4: Cotuit Relo - 1900 MHz LTE Coverage with Proposed Replacement Facility Site Data Site: Lat: 41-37-47.93 N Long: 70-26-30.72 W GE: 60 Ft. CL: 156 Ft. Plot Information 1900 MHz LTE & % 130 Symbol Key Existing Site Proposed Site Coverage Key Greater than -100.9 dbm < -100.9 >= 109.5 dbm <-109.5 dbm $# 157 Feet Cotuit Bay 186 Feet $# North Bay West Bay
Exhibit 5: Cotuit WT Relo - Terrain View Site Data Site: Relo Lat: 41-37-47.93 N Long: 70-26-30.72 W GE: 60 Ft. Symbol Key Existing Site Proposed Site & % 130 Terrain Key 25 feet 50 feet 75 feet 100 feet 125 feet 350 feet $# 186 Feet WT 156 Feet Cotuit Bay $# North Bay West Bay 0 0.5 1 miles
Exhibit 6: FCC Licenses - County Spectrum Licensed Call Sign Frequency Bands (MHz) PCS G-Block WQKS981 1990-1995 PCS B-Block KNLF217 1950-1965 BR - Broadband Radio Service B051 2496-2690 Cellular - X Block WPLM553 862-869 Cellular - X Block WQKS 862-869 C Squared Systems, LLC 16 August 17, 2017