A cow has taken up residence at the former Howard Johnson site in Riverside.
It's not the Holstein or Guernsey kind of cow either.
COW is the acronym for "Cell-on-Wheels," a term that Greenwich zoning officials were recently introduced to when AT&T was granted approval by the Connecticut Siting Council to temporarily place a mobile cell tower truck at 1114 E. Putnam Ave. while HoJo is transformed into a new hotel by Stamford-based developer Charles Mallory.
"This is the first time that we've had one in Greenwich, so I'm just learning about it," said Katie Blankley, the town's deputy director of Planning and Zoning.
Resembling a television news truck with its 70-foot tall mast, the COW is a rare breed.
There are fewer than a half-dozen of the mobile units in use in the state, according to the Connecticut Siting Council, the regulatory agency in charge of cellular tower placement.
It is more common for the trucks to be deployed by wireless companies to disaster areas such as lower Manhattan after 9/11 or for special events with massive crowds such as college football games, according to those familiar with the technology.
"Certainly, what the COW helps us do is provide coverage in a spot where there's either going to be increasing traffic, there's a unique situation or where we have a fixed site that is going to be off line for a little bit of time," said Adam Cormier, an AT&T spokesman based in New Haven.
On the roof of the Howard Johnson, which faces Interstate 95 on one side of the property, AT&T had previously installed a set of antennas inside a cupola.
The wireless company lost the use of the antennas, however, because of a new hotel project on the property.
"That's a major thoroughfare for New England, so we just want to make sure that spot is well-covered," Cormier said of I-95.
AT&T is the exclusive network of the trend-setting iPhone.
When the Connecticut Siting Council approved the mobile cell tower in July at the Howard Johnson site, a timetable of six months was given for how long the truck would be there.
Greenwich has eight cell towers in seven locations overall, according to Blankley.
A mainstay at 1114 E. Putnam Ave. since 1987, the 104-room Howard Johnson closed in January 2008 when its lease ran out.
Plans call for the existing 42,563-square-foot building to be gutted and transformed into an eco-friendly hotel catering to younger guests and business travelers on tighter budgets.
Stamford-based Clearview Investment Management, the same real estate company that is majority owner of the Delamar Greenwich Harbor luxury hotel, owns the site.
A message seeking comment from Mallory, the company's managing general partner, was left Tuesday at his office.
Cormier said AT&T is negotiating with the property's current owner for the right to locate permanent cellular equipment on the new hotel, which does not have a name yet.
"Ideally, a fixed site is going to offer a more consistent experience, which is what we're aiming for once the project is finished," Cormier said.
While the Connecticut Siting Council has jurisdiction over cell towers, municipalities have control over cellular antennas.
The town has already approved the AT&T plan to mount its equipment on the new hotel, so long as it does not exceed the previous height when the Howard Johnson was in operation.
The AT&T antennas will be about 55 feet off the ground under the plan approved by the town, according to Blankley.
S. Derek Phelps, executive director of the Connecticut Siting Council, said he does not believe wireless carriers are turning to COWs to get around the red tape associated with building permanent cell towers.
After all, he said, the mobile units face the same scrutiny as their fixed brethren.
"We're smart enough to not get gamed or played," he said.
Staff writer Neil Vigdor can be reached at
neil.vigdor@scni.com or at 203-625-4436.
