SUQUAMISH — In an effort to try and boost cellphone signals in its community and in spite of a chilly reception by some, the Suquamish Tribe began work in earnest to construct its second cell tower earlier this month.

The 195-foot structure, going up on Wee-Wun Way off of Suquamish way will ensure cell phone users have as many bars as possible. It will join a 400-foot wireless communications tower in Indianola the tribe finished June 30, 2005.

Some residents, however, are frustrated with the lack of notice they received concerning the project.

“We walked up there after a neighbor called us to see what was going on,” said Suquamish resident Gina Whitely. “We asked, because we were curious about the construction, and we were told it was a cell tower for the tribe. One of our concerns was that there was no notification to the neighbors until the first bulldozers showed up and trees started coming down.”

But the cell tower plan has been public knowledge for about a year, said project manager Jeff Thompson. The Suquamish Tribal Council approved the proposal to increase coverage to areas that were in a dead zone — get no reception — in 2005, and has been discussing it since. This will be the tribal government’s first cell tower, though there are three or four others on private property in the area, Thompson said.

“It’s in the council minutes, and it was discussed when the council met,” he said. “A good way to hear about projects going on in the area is to attend the council meetings.”

The council decided the tower was desperately needed because of the lack of cell coverage near the Agate Pass bridge. With the Suquamish Police Department and tribal offices located in a complex off of Suquamish Way, employees have been struggling with dropped calls, Thompson said. For the police department it’s been especially frustrating.

The mobile computer lab the tribe has will also be served by the tower, as it will increase wireless connections in the area. The lab is a 35-foot Winnebago with 12 computer stations, plus a teacher’s work station, and wireless internet connection. The RV travels around Suquamish, offering computer and internet access to different neighborhoods.

“A lot of people who lived in the ‘dead zone’ had a hard time using the computer lab,” Thompson said. “Now they will be able to… About 1,000 people will immediately be served when the cell tower starts functioning towards the end of this year and the beginning of next year. The tribe is doing a lot of development, and this is just one facet of it.”

Neighbors, though, are still concerned, Whitely said. She and others have contacted Kitsap County officials to see what options exist. Not many do through that venue as the county cannot dictate the tribe does on its land.

“As long as it’s on tribal property, we don’t generally interfere,” said Kitsap County Department of Community Development planning manager Scott Diener. “The tribe does have pretty strict guidelines it follows when building, and they do have to follow state and federal guidelines for certain issues, as well.”

He also advised residents to voice their concerns to the tribe. Whitely, however, said she and others haven’t had much success with that in the past.

“We’re all citizens,” she said. “We feel as though no one pays any attention to our concerns when the tribe is involved… Any time we object to something, we are called horrible racists, which just is not true. We just don’t agree with everything the tribe is doing.”