Buttons to Bunkers: Cold War Charm of The I95 Tower in Brookfield

My name is Lou Milano, the co-host of the I-95 Morning Show with Ethan, Lou & Large Dave.

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I started working here in September of 1999 which means I just celebrated my 23rd year with the company and I let it pass by without even realizing it.

In my time with the station I've been up to the Broadcast tower five times and three of them came in my first three years with the company. We used to store some gear up there that we needed once a year and I'd help on those trips up the hill.

The fourth time happened recently when there was an issue with the broadcast signal. I called the company engineer and to my great surprise he trusted me to fix the issue over the phone. He said we'll talk on Facetime, I'll tell you what to do and you push the buttons.

It all worked out a lot better than I imagined but I noticed something when I was up there, that place is f---- cool! It reminded me of a Cold War era government bunker. There are very important, large red and green buttons. There are giant knobs and the room is littered with acronyms I cannot decipher.

I decided it was so cool I needed to go back and get some pictures to share with everyone.

From Buttons to Bunkers: The Cold War Charm of The I95 Tower in Brookfield

My name is Lou Milano, the co-host of the I-95 Morning Show with Ethan, Lou & Large Dave. I started working here in September of 1999 which means I just celebrated my 23rd year with the company and I let it pass by without even realizing it.

In my time with the station I've only been to the broadcast tower site a handful of times. My last trip up there made me think that everyone should get to see this. This is my virtual tour of the tower site from the ground. As you read this I want you to keep in mind that it takes all of these components to create 50,000 watts, one of the strongest signals in Connecticut.

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

Check out the Ethan, Lou & Large Dave Podcast on Apple and Spotify

A Curious Excursion in an Underground Brookfield Tunnel

Recently, I was having a discussion with a friend of mine, I told this person I'd accessed some caves and tunnels in my hometown of Brewster, NY which is just over the NY/CT State Line. He knows how much I love local history, and saw how excited I was about this journey. He told me there was an area of Brookfield, CT that I needed to see, one that most residents have never seen. He told me about a tunnel, one that was not far away from where we were sitting. I made note of the conversation and bookmarked the destination for a future trip.

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

Vacant Brookfield Properties Give Me the Creeps

Brookfield Connecticut is a beautiful New England town with picturesque landscapes and architecture. It does have one section of road that is about a mile long, that time has forgotten. When the highway got extended, the life started to drain from this portion of Federal Road and COVID-19 put the finishing touches on any business that was hanging on for dear life. There are supposed to be people in these places, that's why they were made. The absence of humanity in these spaces makes them tragic and chilling.

Gallery Credit: Lou Milano

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