WICOMICO COUNTY – Cell service improvements are on the horizon for western Wicomico County after the County Council approved a lease agreement this week to allow Verizon Wireless to install a new communications tower in the Bivalve area.
The council passed Resolution 53-2025, authorizing a tower lease with Cellco Partnership (doing business as Verizon Wireless)—a move the County Executives Office says is the result of a two-year effort to address critical infrastructure gaps in the region.
“This is a big win for our residents on the westside,” said County Executive Julie Giordano. “Improving infrastructure—especially in our more rural areas—has been a top priority of my administration. This lease agreement will bring enhanced cellular service that supports not just daily communication needs, but also public safety and economic opportunity."
The new tower is expected to significantly boost coverage for residents, first responders, and businesses in and around Bivalve—where many residents have long reported unreliable service.
“Sometimes, there’s a few hotspots around, you kind of know where they are that you might hit—but it’s just not reliable,” said Wally Plachta, a Nanticoke resident.
Some residents say Verizon, in particular, has historically been difficult to rely on in the area.
“We had Verizon for the longest time, and we couldn’t make a phone call,” said Viki Hochschwender, who lives in Tyaskin. “I would be at my house, and my husband would be in Bivalve, which is a mile away from each other—and we couldn’t call each other, and we ended up changing carriers because of that.”
But with Verizon now leading the new tower project, Hochschwender said the development represents much-needed progress.
“That's huge, because I think a lot of people are moving into the area, and we all came to this area with Verizon, or at least a lot of us did,” she said. “And you had to change, you had to do something additional to your house, or you had to go hang out by the river to make a phone call.”
The Wicomico County Executive’s Office says the next steps include implementing the lease and coordinating with Verizon on the tower’s construction timeline.