Faster internet will be coming to Eau Claire because of a new fiber optic network.
Tuesday night, the Eau Claire City Council unanimously voted 11 to 0 in favor of a memorandum of understanding with TDS Telecom, a Madison-based broadband company.
TDS will privately fund the $30 million project, installing roughly 300 miles of fiber cables to reach about 33,000 residential and business addresses.
TDS officials say they are not asking for taxpayer money to build the network.
Virtually all of the installation will be underground, running through thoroughfares, subdivisions and streets, so there will be some traffic disruption.
But officials say the benefits will far outweigh the temporary convenience.
"People can telecommute. They can study from home. New businesses can site or expand in Eau Claire. Often times, one of the most important questions new companies or businesses have is, 'what's the technology environment look like?' And for Eau Claire, going forward, they'll have the ability to say we are a fiber optic city, a smart city," said Drew Petersen, TDS Telecom senior vice president of corporate affairs.
The network would operate under TDS ownership with a service fee to customers.
Installation is estimated to begin at the start of next year and could take two to three years to complete.
TDS officials say for 300 megabytes per second of download/upload speed, fiber internet will cost about $35 a month. It could cost $50 for 600 megabytes and $70 for one gigabyte.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Katrina Lim
Quelle/Source: WQOW, 18.08.2021
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