Can you hear them now?

BAYVIEW — Bayview residents frustrated over a lack of cellphone coverage are dialing up a letter-writing and video campaign to Verizon in hopes of being answered.

Steve May, who serves on the Lake Pend Oreille town's cell tower committee, said a group has been pursuing a cell tower in town to improve public safety for about 10 years.

He said there was optimism last year when a site was approved through Kootenai County, but the group recently learned that Verizon didn't include the tower in its 2019 budget.

"I see their commercials on TV about emergency services, flying drones over places and we get nothing," May said. "I've seen their corporate finances and it's not about a lack of funding, so why are they leaving us in the lurch?"

Messages to Verizon officials seeking comment were forwarded to Spokeswoman Heidi Flato.

"Delivering a great customer experience is our priority," she wrote in an email to The Press. "While we don't have a set timeline regarding this particular cell site, I will be happy to let you know when that changes."

She declined to comment on resident concerns, adding that those would be shared with company leaders.

May said cellphone coverage in Bayview is spotty at best.

"I can't get one bar on my phone at my house," he said. "If I do get a bar, I could lose it by moving in my chair. I pay my bill every month and I don't get coverage. My cellphone at my house is nothing more than a paper weight."

May said public safety concerns were heightened during the Cape Horn fire in 2015.

"Fire crews had to evacuate out of Cape Horn," he said. "Lives were put in danger because there was not good communication."

May said residents have fired off letters to top Verizon administrators and major stockholders.

"We're putting pressure on them from the top down," he said.

At the Bayview Community Council's recent Oktoberfest party, nearly 80 residents joined in to make a YouTube video message to Verizon.

May said emergency response agencies, including Kootenai County's Office of Emergency Management and Sheriff's Office, have voiced the need for improved cell coverage in Bayview.

"If I'm on the mountain and in the line of sight with other cell towers I may be able to get coverage, but Bayview is below the line of sight," he said. "That's why we need our own tower. All that needs to be done at this point is put it up. We're not talking about a luxury item. This is a basic necessity."

May said the committee hasn't moved on to another cellphone company in pursuit of a tower because it figured one by Verizon would have been erected by now.

"We've gotten this far; the finish line is in sight," May said, adding that the secured tower site is on Merriweather Road behind the post office.

Bayview's Sheryl Puckett said she’s trying to remain hopeful that a tower will eventually be constructed.

"Bayview has a proven track record for tenaciously rising to any occasion and I'm sure it's just a matter of time until Verizon or someone else realizes our need," she said.

May calls the situation a "kick in the crotch."

"I'm glad they've got all that technology,” he said, “but we're sitting outside the restaurant in the rain watching them eat their steak."