[Davisgig] Recently in Community Networks... Week of 6/30

[Christopher Mitchell]

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Connecting Georgia's Munis - Community Broadband Bits Podcast 156
<http://muninetworks.org/content/connecting-georgias-munis-community-broadband-bits-podcast-156>
Tue, June 23, 2015 | Posted by christopher
<http://muninetworks.org/users/christopher>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/connecting-georgias-munis-community-broadband-bits-podcast-156>

For years, we have urged municipal networks to cooperate in various ways to
lower costs. For instance, by building a shared middle mile
<http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term456> network to aggregate their
bandwidth <http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term2> and get a better deal
due to the higher volume. So it came as a bit of a shock that Georgia
Public Web <http://www.gapublicweb.net/About%20GPW.html> has been helping
many municipal networks in these ways for well over a decade.

David Muschamp, President and CEO of Georgia Public Web (GPW), joins us for
episode 156 of Community Broadband Bits to discuss what the member-owned
nonprofit organization does to improve Internet access across the state.

GPW operates over 3000 miles of fiber connecting businesses and even entire
communities. They operate a 365-24-7 network operations center and provide
consulting, focusing particularly on the needs of the nearly 30 local
governments that own the company.

... Listen to the Show Here
<http://muninetworks.org/content/connecting-georgias-munis-community-broadband-bits-podcast-156>
... Read the transcript from this episode here
<http://muninetworks.org/content/transcript-community-broadband-bits-episode-156>
 ...

Alabama Republican Speaks Out in Favor of Local Authority
<http://muninetworks.org/content/alabama-republican-speaks-out-favor-local-authority>
Mon, June 22, 2015 | Posted by lgonzalez
<http://muninetworks.org/users/lgonzalez>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/alabama-republican-speaks-out-favor-local-authority>

As we have learned, communities with municipal networks have tended to be
politically conservative
<http://www.muninetworks.org/content/most-municipal-networks-built-conservative-cities>.
Nevertheless, conservative state level politicians have often supported
measures to revoke local authority to encourage local Internet choice.
Recently, Alabama State Senator Tom Whatley
<http://www.legislature.state.al.us/aliswww/Senator.aspx?NAME=Whatley&OID_SPONSOR=85903&OID_PERSON=6695&SESSNAME=Regular%20Session%202015>,
a Republican from Auburn, expressed his support for local authority in
AL.com.
<http://www.al.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/06/broadband_investment_puts_alab.html>

Whatley introduced SB 438
<http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/alison/searchableinstruments/2015rs/bills/SB438.htm>,
which would remove service area restrictions on municipal providers and
remove the currently restriction preventing other municipalities from
providing voice, video, or Internet access services. As he notes in his
opinion piece, the bill did not move beyond the Transportation and Energy
Committee, but he also asserts that he will be back next year to press for
the measure.

Auburn is near Opelika where the community has deployed a FTTH network
<http://www.muninetworks.org/tags-382> to serve residents and spur economic
development. If the restrictions are eliminated, Opelika could expand to
Auburn and even other rural areas nearby.

... Read the Full Post here ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/alabama-republican-speaks-out-favor-local-authority>

Longmont's NextLight Video: A Brief Look at the Network and the Community
<http://muninetworks.org/content/longmonts-nextlight-video-brief-look-network-and-community>
Tue, June 23, 2015 | Posted by lgonzalez
<http://muninetworks.org/users/lgonzalez>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/longmonts-nextlight-video-brief-look-network-and-community>

When we talk to municipal network leaders about lessons learned, they often
tell us that marketing is an area where they feel a particularly
vulnerability. Whenever we see a great piece of marketing from a municipal
network, we like to share it.

When Longmont rebranded its FTTH
<http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term13> network
under the name NextLight, they released this awesome video. Check it out!

... Watch the Video Here ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/longmonts-nextlight-video-brief-look-network-and-community>

Chanute's FTTH Project on Hold Indefinitely
<http://muninetworks.org/content/chanutes-ftth-project-hold-indefinitely>
Wed, June 24, 2015 | Posted by lgonzalez
<http://muninetworks.org/users/lgonzalez>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/chanutes-ftth-project-hold-indefinitely>

Changes in leadership in Chanute have put the community's FTTH
<http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term13> plan in suspended animation. In
April, the City Commission decided to delay financing shortly before the
scheduled bond sale. It is unfortunate that residents and businesses will
lose the opportunities the fiber deployment would bring. Nevertheless, they
deserve the right to make their own choices, good or bad.

The community of Chanute deployed a network incrementally with no borrowing
or bonding in order to improve efficiencies, save public dollars, and
control connectivity for municipal facilities. Local schools and colleges,
struggling to compete, began taking advantage of technology in the
classroom and expanded distance learning. The network eventually created a
number of economic development opportunities
<http://www.muninetworks.org/content/spirit-aerosystems-chooses-chanute> when
community leaders started providing better connectivity to local
businesses. We told Chanute's story in our 2013 report "*Chanute's Gig: One
Rural Kansas Community's Tradition of Innovation Led to a Gigabit and
Ubiquitous Wireless Coverage* <http://www.ilsr.org/chanute-rural-gigabit/>
."

... More Details and Background in the Full Post ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/chanutes-ftth-project-hold-indefinitely>

In West Texas, "Hub City" Conducts Fiber Feasibility Study
<http://muninetworks.org/content/west-texas-hub-city-conducts-fiber-feasibility-study>
Thu, June 25, 2015 | Posted by phineas
<http://muninetworks.org/users/phineas>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/west-texas-hub-city-conducts-fiber-feasibility-study>

A feasibility study conducted by the Lubbock Power & Light (LP&L) Electric
Utility Board this April discussed several potential benefits of installing
a fiber optic cable in the City of Lubbock, Texas <http://www.mylubbock.us/>.
Charles Dunn, a member of the Utility Board, proposed installing fiber
optic cables alongside the city’s utility lines, which are currently being
buried underground as part of a three-phase, $1.9 million downtown
redevelopment initiative
<http://lubbockonline.com/business/2015-01-24/downtown-lubbock-redevelopment-plan-being-executed-slowly-surely#.VYB_rPlVikp>
.

A fiber optic cable, Dunn contended
<http://www.myfoxlubbock.com/news/local/story/lpl-fiber-optic/Kj7v8yZX2kOus1vwqybz4w.cspx>,
could increase Internet speeds hundredfold (from a max speed of around 10
Mbps <http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term18> to one above 1 Gbps
<http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term14>), attract high tech companies
to the city, and induce Texas Tech University students to stay in Lubbock
after they graduate. In Lubbock, where Internet speeds run about 35 percent
slower than they do in the rest of the state, a fiber network could be a
boon for businesses and residents alike.

... Don't Mess with Muni Fiber in Texas ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/west-texas-hub-city-conducts-fiber-feasibility-study>

Ketchum Will Install Conduit Only; Cox's Role?
<http://muninetworks.org/content/ketchum-will-install-conduit-only-coxs-role>
Fri, June 26, 2015 | Posted by lgonzalez
<http://muninetworks.org/users/lgonzalez>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/ketchum-will-install-conduit-only-coxs-role>

In Idaho, Ketchum appears to have abandoned its flirtation with a municipal
fiber optic network
<http://www.muninetworks.org/content/idaho-town-calls-fiber-investment-cable-and-dsl-not-good-enough>,
choosing instead to lay conduit <http://muninetworks.org/glossary/1#term305> as
a way to encourage private investment. The decision is an interesting
result that suggests incumbent Cox Communications has considerable power
over local decision making.

Readers may recall how in May 2013 the local broadband advisory committeebooted
Cox representatives off
<http://www.muninetworks.org/content/ketchum-idaho-no-tolerance-cox-push-polls>
the
roster. Residents began to receive telephone calls which amounted to push
polls from the incumbent cable provider; the then-Mayor would would have
none of that. Even though communities leaders had not stated they were
considering a municipal network, they were put off by Cox's underhanded
approach.

Since then, the administration has changed and it appears this time Cox has
successfully shanghaied the decision. Cox is back on the committee
establishing a plan and pressing for the result we would expect.

... Get the Rest of these Frustrating Developments Here ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/ketchum-will-install-conduit-only-coxs-role>

Gigabit Internet for North Central Ohio Schools
<http://muninetworks.org/content/gigabit-internet-north-central-ohio-schools>
Wed, June 24, 2015 | Posted by hannah <http://muninetworks.org/users/hannah>
<http://muninetworks.org/content/gigabit-internet-north-central-ohio-schools>

Consolidated Electric Cooperative <http://www.consolidated.coop/>, a
nonprofit, member-owned cooperative, will soon offer gigabit broadband in
rural North Central Ohio. They intend to first offer the gigabit to local
schools and then to businesses.

According to eSchoolNews, Consolidated Electric Cooperative will provide 15
school districts with gigabit connectivity
<http://www.eschoolnews.com/2015/06/03/ohio-gigabit-broadband-672/>. The
school districts will then have greater access to online resources and be
better able to comply with mandated online testing in Ohio. In the article,
Doug Payauys, vice-president of information systems for Consolidated
Electric Cooperative, described the need for improved Internet access in
schools:

"Technology is creating a shift in today’s classroom, and it’s transforming
the way teachers educate and students learn. As the country becomes a more
digital-based society, schools must work to transform lesson plans and
accommodate new technologies”

... Many More Details in Our Full Story ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/gigabit-internet-north-central-ohio-schools>

Tennessee Fiber Optic Communities - Video on Gig Freedom
<http://muninetworks.org/content/tennessee-fiber-optic-communities-video-gig-freedom>
Sat, June 27, 2015 | Posted by christopher
<http://muninetworks.org/users/christopher>

In a video calling for "Broadband Equity,"
<http://www.tn4fiber.org/home/2015/6/10/support-fiber-optic-expansion> the
Tennessee Fiber Optic Communities have released a video explaining why
communities must have their local Internet choice restored.

We encourage you to Like and Follow their campaign on Facebook
<https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tennessee-Fiber-Optic-Communities/875323889215062>
.

... Watch the Video Here ...
<http://muninetworks.org/content/tennessee-fiber-optic-communities-video-gig-freedom>

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