Inconsistent cell coverage frustrates some Lakewood Ranch residents

When it comes to cell phone coverage in the Lakewood Ranch area, Rosedale resident Carol Weaver had a pointed description that matches others who have suffered when trying to use their phone in East County.

"The service is just so inconsistent, and you can't live your life like in a normal place,” Weaver said. “You have to always have that in your head when you’re out.”

Carriers have worked to improve service in Lakewood Ranch with the use of small-cell sites. Verizon spokeswoman Kate Jay said a small cell’s range could extend up to 2,000 feet. Thus, if the small cell sites were primarily located along main roads, it could be difficult to reach people who live deep within their own neighborhoods. That’s where supplemental technology like range extenders can make a difference.

Local leaders and residents alike say that the efforts haven't been enough and there's still issues. Manatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said she’s had trouble with her service in the Edgewater community and in other areas around Lakewood Ranch. She pointed the finger at the carriers for not wanting to put more of the small-cell sites in the community.

“There is no doubt that it is still a problem,” she said. “The issue is that cell phone towers are not very well liked in different neighborhoods. And so because of that, the only alternative that's come up have been the low cell towers that you see on the side of the road, like you see him quite often on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard. They do work, but the problem is the providers themselves. So unless you are with a provider that, you know, is using one of those low cell towers, your service isn't going to improve.”

Verizon Communications Manager Chris Serico said Verizon has activated 16 4G LTE small-cell sites throughout Lakewood Ranch along with a 4G LTE macro site in Myakka City since late 2020.

“In Lakewood Ranch and Myakka City, our new sites will provide 4G LTE and 5G Nationwide services that will improve both coverage and capacity,” he said. “We also have plans to expand our regional network with additional sites in Lakewood Ranch and Bradenton.”

Some much-needed help nearly came to Lakewood Ranch five years ago. Lakewood Ranch Community District 6 Chair Jim Rogoze said that USA Cran approached CDD’s 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 about becoming a small-cell provider. USA Cran had plans to construct between 13 and 30 sites, but plans fell through when carriers wanted to go their own route to provide the technology.

“We were all pretty happy about it," Rogoze said. "They were very cognizant of how they would look, and where they would try to put them. The bottom line was that none of the carriers would work with them.”

Rogoze said the issue of small-cell sites has become a “back burner” issue for the CDDs. The carriers are able to select where to put the sites based on need and then worked with the FCC and Manatee County. 

“We were all kind of disappointed when the other thing fell apart because it was going to be originally 4G, but it was going to be able to be very easily converted to 5G,” Rogoze said.

Lakewood Ranch Inter-District Authority Interim Executive Director Steve Zielinski said Lakewood Ranch was notified that the Verizon small-cell sites had been launched and all were active in June. He added that he did not have information if there are any more plans for sites, but understood that Verizon would continue to monitor and assess needs. 

That hasn’t been much help to Weaver, who said she doesn’t have issues with the Verizon service in her home but becomes frustrated as soon as she ventures out. For example, she uses the Starbucks app on her phone to try to order when headed to the Main Street Lakewood Ranch location, but has no service until she’s at the restaurant. It affects her ability to work remotely.

“I’ll sit in the car while my mother takes the dog out for a walk on Main Street, and I won’t be able to get on the web or get on any calls I have to make because there’s no service,” Weaver said. “You can’t rely on it. Sometimes it’s fine, but the next day I’ll be stuck when nothing works.”

Denise Equinda said that her Verizon service is great at her home near state road 70, but drops off significantly the closer she gets to Lakewood Ranch Town Hall.

“Most of the time my phone works wonderfully, and that’s important because I don’t have a landline,” Equinda said. “I’ve really never had an issue unless it’s a regional-type of thing.”

Lakewood Ranch resident Cheryl Hess, who is another Verizon customer, said she’s had problems getting in touch with family that also lives in the area thanks to static and dropped calls. 

“There are times that I’m out with my husband and we can’t get a hold of my mother, whose in her 90s,” Hess said. “I’ve also tried to get doctor’s appointments and haven’t been able to get through.”

Hess also said her phone works perfectly inside her home, but problems arise when she’s out for a walk.

“It's not always clear,” she said. “I know for a fact that my Verizon is far better than the others but we need more cell towers. I wouldn't mind having something that's a little more reliable. I can count on.”

Randy Berkow said he hasn’t had any issues with his Verizon service in the two years he’s lived in Waterside. When he did a signal test on his phone on Nov. 24, the signal strength was about 50 percent. It goes away a few miles to the north.

“It seems to get worse when you get into Manatee County,” he said. “I'm not going say it's gotten any better. I certainly don't think it's changed in the last couple of years.”

Spokesperson Sarah Rodriguez said AT&T considers the wishes of the community and works with local officials to determine a solution that best meets the needs of its customers. They have two of the smaller towers in the area, including one located about 100 yards from the Lakewood Ranch Boulevard entrance to Lakewood Ranch Country Club, and they have plans for a 150-foot monopole near the southeast corner of Lorraine Road's intersection with State Road 64.

“We understand the importance of keeping our customers connected and we continually look for ways to improve our networks and provide better service,” Rodriguez said in a statement provided to The Observer. “From 2018-2020, we invested nearly $3.1 billion in our wireless and wireline networks in Florida to expand coverage and improve connectivity in more communities.”

Verizon has filed plans with Manatee County for more towers, including a 200-foot tower that will be built near Myakka City.  They’ve also said previously that they have plans for a 110-foot cell phone tower, which would be located on 111th Street East behind Publix at Lakewood Ranch Boulevard and S.R. 70. That cell tower is expected to become operational in 2022 and could have a coverage radius of about two miles, depending on factors such as terrain and number of users.

More plans for a 150-foot high monopole cell tower that will be in addition to a previously approved mini-warehouse/self storage facility near the southeast corner of Lorraine Road and State Road 64 will be reviewed by the Manatee County Commission on Dec. 2. 

“Verizon continues to build, upgrade and strengthen our wireless network in Lakewood Ranch, Myakka City and beyond,” Serico said. “Our network engineers have confirmed to me our network is running as designed. We’re continuing to enhance performance in this area, with additional plans to expand our network to boost our capacity and coverage.”

Baugh said that new cell towers are usually approved adminstratively by Manatee County and it's unusual that it gets to the commission level.

“The problem is not the county,” Baugh said. “A lot of people think it is...but it's not. The problem is that if a carrier doesn't come forward and wants the service in Lakewood Ranch, it doesn't happen. They have to want to do it. You just don't put in a cell phone tower and all of a sudden you get service. That's not how it works.”

Serico also encouraged Verizon customers to contact the carrier’s customer service line if they have concerns about their service or need a range extender for their homes.

T-Mobile completed its merger with Sprint a little over a year ago. Lakewood Ranch's Louis Morales said the merger hasn't had much of an impact on his service. He said he has had trouble with reception when he is in other parts of Lakewood Ranch.

“No problem at home (off State Road 64), but when I start driving on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, 'Oh man, it's just up and down,'” he said. “Once you get down by LECOM (on Lakewood Ranch Boulevard), it’s gone. It's not consistent. I’ve had five years of dealing with this inconsistency.”

T-Mobile spokesperson Roni Singleton said that the carrier has both 4G and 5G coverage in parts of the Lakewood Ranch area and that they are actively working to increase both coverage and capacity. 

“We’re also working to upgrade sites that serve the community with Ultra Capacity 5G, which will help to deliver even faster speeds,” she said. 

When told that carriers have plans of using small-cell sites and building more towers, Morales was not optimistic. 

“Seeing it done will make us believe that they’re actually building more towers,” Morales said.

Baugh had even stronger words for the carriers.

“For the life of me, I can't understand why these providers don't come out here to the best selling community in the United States,” she said. “You think that they'd all want to be out here, but from what I gather that is not the case. So it depends on the provider. I don't think there's any great solutions to it that I've heard of, so it's just going to be one of those things that we're going to have to deal with until AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile and all these different carriers decide they want to be out here.”