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Comments on news posted 2008-08-18 10:05:52: [att=1340235,r]AT&T's somewhat ugly U-Verse VRAD cabinets, required to offer U-Verse VDSL service, have been a point of contention for local homeowners, who claim the curb side cabinets erode property values. ..

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fatmanskinny
Premium Member
join:2004-01-04
Wandering

1 recommendation

fatmanskinny

Premium Member

Wow, what beautiful landscaping!

I bet they made center page in Better Homes and Garbage.

dadkins
Can you do Blu?
MVM
join:2003-09-26
Hercules, CA

dadkins

MVM

Re: Wow, what beautiful landscaping!

said by fatmanskinny:

I bet they made center page in Better Homes and Garbage.
LMAO!
53059959 (banned)
Temp banned from BBR more then anyone
join:2002-10-02
PwnZone

53059959 (banned) to fatmanskinny

Member

to fatmanskinny

Bury

why can't they just bury them? it would seem like they have the technology to keep this stuff watertight by now.

CylonRed
MVM
join:2000-07-06
Bloom County
·Metronet

CylonRed

MVM

Re: Bury

Because after awhile they will leak - water is a GREAT force and it takes a tiny little nick and it will work its way in. At the previous house my mom lived at the phone went out every time it rained a great deal.

In our are of Ohio - they have done a great job of locating them. Usually near streets (farthest away from the house) and very near or in utility easements.

Airwolf7
Premium Member
join:2004-12-12
Franklin, KY

Airwolf7

Premium Member

Sounds reasonable to me.

Sounds reasonable to me.

pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium Member
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD

pnh102

Premium Member

Unsurprising

quote:
... third has AT&T paying $1500 per site regardless if landscaping is necessary. Most Illinois cities are apparently picking the third option, says the source.
Of course the government always picks the option that gets it the most "free" money, courtesy of AT&T's subscribers. I guess those ugly looking boxes are not that ugly after all.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: Unsurprising

said by pnh102:

quote:
... third has AT&T paying $1500 per site regardless if landscaping is necessary. Most Illinois cities are apparently picking the third option, says the source.
Of course the government always picks the option that gets it the most "free" money, courtesy of AT&T's subscribers. I guess those ugly looking boxes are not that ugly after all.
That is pretty shady. I bet their excuse is "We'll only use the money for landscaping!" ... yeah right.

en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA

1 recommendation

en102

Member

Re: Unsurprising

Goes straight into the 'general fund', and will (most likely) never be used for its intended purpose.

SillyRabbit
@tds.net

SillyRabbit to Matt3

Anon

to Matt3
Why doesn't AT&T simply buy boxes that look like something else. Like a Rock, or something that doesn't look industrial? Cell phone towers are designed like this.
rahvin112
join:2002-05-24
Sandy, UT

rahvin112 to Matt3

Member

to Matt3
$1500 is nothing. That might get you 2 people for 2 hours and no materials. Landscaping is expensive. Considering the damage they typically do installing stuff like this $1500 is the bare minimum, if I was the city in question I'd probably want more and if I was a property owner I would want more. When they replaced the transformer in my yard that exploded they did almost that much damage to existing landscaping just driving in a new one onto the existing service. Add in new service lines and an new concrete pad and the damage would have been double or triple that. You people that have never owned a house don't realize that bush every 1 gallon plant is $20+, mulch, curbing, sod and plants can quickly top $1000 and that's just materials, labor triples the cost.
ctggzg
Premium Member
join:2005-02-11
USA

ctggzg

Premium Member

Re: Unsurprising

said by rahvin112:

You people that have never owned a house don't realize that bush every 1 gallon plant is $20+, mulch, curbing, sod and plants can quickly top $1000 and that's just materials, labor triples the cost.
Then you've been getting ripped off.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5 to pnh102

Premium Member

to pnh102
said by pnh102:
quote:
... third has AT&T paying $1500 per site regardless if landscaping is necessary. Most Illinois cities are apparently picking the third option, says the source.
Of course the government always picks the option that gets it the most "free" money, courtesy of AT&T's subscribers. I guess those ugly looking boxes are not that ugly after all.
I'll bet the city takes the money and does no landscaping at all for their residents.

Corehhi
join:2002-01-28
Bluffton, SC

Corehhi

Member

Re: Unsurprising

Bet your right and that's just not right. Those boxes are ugly and I would be mad about having one of those in my front yard.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3

Premium Member

Re: Unsurprising

said by Corehhi:

Bet your right and that's just not right. Those boxes are ugly and I would be mad about having one of those in my front yard.
Yep, and the only time a small sliver of the $1500 per box will be utilized is when someone complains loud enough.

NormanS
I gave her time to steal my mind away
MVM
join:2001-02-14
San Jose, CA
TP-Link TD-8616
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Netgear FR114P

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to Corehhi
Click for full size
Comcast
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Comcast
said by Corehhi:

Those boxes are ugly and I would be mad about having one of those in my front yard.
Uglier than these?

Granted, these are not in anybody's front yards. Nor are the majority of the VRADs that I have seen. And all of the VRADs I have seen are adjacent to even uglier "B-Boxes"; which have been in the neighborhoods for years, getting faded with age.

thedragonmas
Premium Member
join:2007-12-28
Albany, GA

thedragonmas to Corehhi

Premium Member

to Corehhi
if they gave me MAX speed free for life, id let them set the sucker on my front porch!

fatness
subtle

join:2000-11-17
fishing

fatness to FFH5

to FFH5
said by FFH5:

I'll bet the city takes the money and does no landscaping at all for their residents.
Which raises the question of what AT&T feels it's getting for its $1500.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: Unsurprising

said by fatness:
said by FFH5:

I'll bet the city takes the money and does no landscaping at all for their residents.
Which raises the question of what AT&T feels it's getting for its $1500.
It blocks lawsuits by city governments and friendly rulings on "right of way" issues and zoning issues.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

Matt3 to fatness

Premium Member

to fatness
said by fatness:
said by FFH5:

I'll bet the city takes the money and does no landscaping at all for their residents.
Which raises the question of what AT&T feels it's getting for its $1500.
Probably use it to convince regulators. "Hey, we'd offer to landscape, but when we do and even paid for the communities to do it themselves they apparently weren't too worried about it!"

fatness
subtle

join:2000-11-17
fishing

fatness

Re: Unsurprising

said by FFH5:

It blocks lawsuits by city governments and friendly rulings on "right of way" issues and zoning issues.
Just accepting the money wouldn't block lawsuits. Is that written into agreements?
said by Matt3:

Probably use it to convince regulators. "Hey, we'd offer to landscape, but when we do and even paid for the communities to do it themselves they apparently weren't too worried about it!"
That would be my guess, too.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: Unsurprising

said by fatness:
said by FFH5:

It blocks lawsuits by city governments and friendly rulings on "right of way" issues and zoning issues.
Just accepting the money wouldn't block lawsuits. Is that written into agreements?

If the city accepted the money it would block lawsuits by the city. It wouldn't block lawsuits by the residents.

fatness
subtle

join:2000-11-17
fishing

fatness

Re: Unsurprising

I don't see that stated in the article, and I don't follow your reasoning. »www.sj-r.com/breaking/x1 ··· -rollout
LostMile
Premium Member
join:2002-06-07
Coloma, MI

1 edit

LostMile to fatness

Premium Member

to fatness
said by fatness:

Which raises the question of what AT&T feels it's getting for its $1500.
Maybe it gives T an excuse to add yet another line item to their phone bills?

insomniac
Oh Yeah
Premium Member
join:2002-09-22
Naperville, IL

insomniac

Premium Member

Re: Unsurprising

Yep, I'm waiting for the "Landscaping Recovery Fee."

Mr Anon
@k12.il.us

Mr Anon to pnh102

Anon

to pnh102
My thoughts exactly.

Airwolf7
Premium Member
join:2004-12-12
Franklin, KY

Airwolf7

Premium Member

They need a lay down version of that box.

That box is just to tall.

They need to use the tall box where they are space constrained and use a much shorter and longer box where they are not.

People complain because they have a six foot tall box in their yard. It's kind of hard not to notice a six foot tall box in the yard.

If they used a shorter and longer box where they could, it would be easier to plant shrubs around it making it less obtrusive.

Might be less complaints if it were easier to hide, but there would always be someone to complain about something.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall

MVM

To BBR Users...

This VRAD box doesn't look bad at all. It looks like heaven.

To the basic consumer, they are an eyesore.

Doctor Four
My other vehicle is a TARDIS
Premium Member
join:2000-09-05
Dallas, TX

1 recommendation

Doctor Four

Premium Member

Re: To BBR Users...

said by Nightfall:

This VRAD box doesn't look bad at all. It looks like heaven.

Especially if it's in your neighborhood and close enough
for you to get U-Verse Max 10Mbps/1.5Mbps speed service.

BabyBear
Keep wise ...with Nite-Owl
join:2007-01-11

BabyBear

Member

AT&T: Your landscape delivered!


Does that include any graffiti cleanup too? Our VRAD hasn't been hit yet, but our "POTS Box" gets tagged at least every few months.
radougherty
join:1999-07-23
Austin, TX

radougherty

Member

Re: AT&T: Your landscape delivered!

said by BabyBear:

Does that include any graffiti cleanup too? Our VRAD hasn't been hit yet, but our "POTS Box" gets tagged at least every few months.
I've seen many VRAD's here in Austin tagged already. Some with the normal graffiti but others where someone has just painted UGLY on them.

hayabusa3303
Over 200 mph
Premium Member
join:2005-06-29
Florence, SC

hayabusa3303

Premium Member

.

Very nice drawing there Karl.

That is about right, put one flower down and say its landscaped.

AnonPerson
join:2000-08-26
Lexington, KY

AnonPerson

Member

Put one of these in my yard!

I'm sure people used to complain about those large green cable boxes that were put in everybody's yards 20-30 years ago, but by god the service they provided was amazing eh? Similar to what we have here. Even though these large boxes may not look pretty, at least we are making progress in the broadband market (slowly).
bogey7806
join:2004-03-19
Here

bogey7806

Member

Re: Put one of these in my yard!

Bellsouth's standard operating procedure on most sites was to fence around it.

King P
Don't blame me. I voted for Ron Paul
Premium Member
join:2004-11-17
Murfreesboro, TN

King P

Premium Member

What?

I'm one of AT&Ts biggest critics, but even I think this is ridiculous. The cities complain about not getting service, and then complain about the equipment that provides it? Now if they planted a VRAD in your front yard, that's a different story.

You can't have your cake and eat it too. Also, why am I not surprised that the cities are opting for the free money option? If they truly cared about the looks of it, then they would only want the landscaping done.

•••••••••

fatmanskinny
Premium Member
join:2004-01-04
Wandering
·AT&T FTTP

1 edit

fatmanskinny

Premium Member

This song plays as AT&T installs the VRAD box.

»www.youtube.com/watch?v= ··· t-sx5MDc


"That AT&T VRAD box is simply marvtabuloulicious. Smooches!"

Jameson
Premium Member
join:2004-05-28
united state

Jameson

Premium Member

Uhm.

You can put one in my yard if im going to get fiber

swhx7
Premium Member
join:2006-07-23
Elbonia

swhx7

Premium Member

Why not dress up the boxes?

Imagine if they built a nicer-looking box around each metal box. Something with wood construction and a little roof, maybe - in any case consistent with the architecture/esthetics of the surrounding houses. It could look like a like a sort of gate-house, like the ones occasionally seen in upscale areas. This could be done for $1500 per box.

Just an idea - maybe this would satisfy complainers enough to lessen an obstacle to better, faster internet.

•••••

Dogfather
Premium Member
join:2007-12-26
Laguna Hills, CA

Dogfather

Premium Member

City keeps the money

So AT&T bribes the city at $1500 per box and residents still get to see the fridges in front of their homes.

Gotta love the greed of gov't.

meh37
@verizon.net

meh37

Anon

Test-bed for meta-materials...

cloak of invisibility? (though it might make things more difficult for techs trying to find them when they need maintenance... but that's a small price to pay, I guess)


Lowtarget
Premium Member
join:2003-12-22
Alger, OH

Lowtarget

Premium Member

Re: Test-bed for meta-materials...

said by meh37 :

cloak of invisibility? (though it might make things more difficult for techs trying to find them when they need maintenance... but that's a small price to pay, I guess)


I can see this happen.. Kid on a bike running into the cloak of invisibility. lmao

Kylemaul
Lovin' My Firefox
Premium Member
join:2001-03-30
Puyallup, WA

Kylemaul

Premium Member

Bury these already!

For $1500 per site, they could/should have buried these things.

••••••••
zipjay
join:2003-03-11
South Williamson, KY

zipjay

Member

ya know..

i never thought about it.. but property owners could build like a nice lil shead around the boxes after given permission from AT&T (im sure they could care less) and bam the boxes fit in much better

insomniac84
join:2002-01-03
Schererville, IN

insomniac84

Member

Oh no he didn't!

Uh uh! I ain't hearing that. See, you askin', or you tellin'? 'Cause nobody tells Boxy Brown!
quote:
In a new twist, it appears that AT&T is starting to dole out $1,500 per box in Illinois to be used for landscaping, in an effort to make the boxes less, well, boxy.

heat84
DSLR Influencer
join:2004-03-11
Delray Beach, FL

heat84

Member

------------------------------------------------------------

Why not just disguise them like they do Cell Phone towers?

OSUGoose
join:2007-12-27
Columbus, OH

OSUGoose

Member

New Slogan

Your Landscaping. Delivered.

play on Your World. Delivered.
Moffetts
join:2005-05-09
San Mateo, CA

Moffetts

Member

Re: New Slogan

Thank you for clearing that up. I don't think we've heard their slogan enough already.

Personally, I find the boxes to be a gateway to something other than the wussy 768k DSL I'm forced to use in lieu of the nicely overloaded Comcast that is around these parts. AT&T, you can put one of these right outside my bedroom window for all I care. Or in the middle of the lawn. Or... I don't really care. I wish I was in a position to talk crap on AT&T for these "ugly" VRADs, but since I can't exactly get anything better from someone else, I have to love them.

And I do.

OSUGoose
join:2007-12-27
Columbus, OH

OSUGoose

Member

3 ft rule

Just wonder if in a few years at&t will be sending another crew out to cut down the landscaping since it will not get maintained, and thus will start to encroach on the 3ft rule for access.
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