A wireless multi-cell communication system, such as a time division duplex (TDD) system, includes at least one wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) and a plurality of base stations which broadcast beacon signals into a plurality of sectors of a cell of the system. Beacon channel acquisition performance is enhanced by reducing beacon channel mutual interference. Each of the base stations broadcasts a beacon signal into at least one of the cell sectors in a first time slot and to at least another one of the cell sectors in a second time slot different from the first time slot. The WTRU determines, at a particular position, which one of the beacon signals has the best signal quality, acquires the one beacon signal and establishes communications via the base station that generated the one beacon signal having the best signal quality.