Municipal network study to start soon?
Happy New Year News! We’ve been notified by the City’s Chief Information Officer that the Fiber Optic project is a priority for the Mayor’s Office in 2020, with timeline planning …
How creating a municipal network could be sped up
Mayor David Narkewicz’s capital plan calls for two studies. The first study would survey the community to determine if enough residents and businesses would subscribe to a municipal network. Money …
No news is good news, we think
In July, our coalition was invited by Mayor Narkewicz to help refine a RFP (Request for Proposal) to study the viability of a municipal network for the city. This was …
Privacy and a Northampton municipal network
Our coalition feels that if built, a Northampton municipal network should protect the privacy of those using it. Users should have confidence that the city won’t be tracking what they …
Pros and cons of fiber to the home
While our coalition wants the city to create a municipal network, we also see our role as part educational. That’s because some of us work in the IT industry. In …
Easthampton to vote on creating Municipal Light Plant
Today’s Gazette has a story updating readers on Easthampton’s efforts to create a municipal network. The lede is that voters in Easthampton will vote on whether to create a municipal …
Shutesbury residents getting wired to municipal network
This doesn’t seem to have made the Daily Hampshire Gazette yet. But according to a Facebook post, some residents of Shutesbury (near Amherst) are now wired to the town’s new …
Funding a municipal network
Our coalition has been looking at funding models for a Northampton municipal network. The Ammon, Idaho funding model One intriguing idea is being used in Ammon, Idaho. Its municipal network …
Coalition meeting update – next steps
Our coalition met Tuesday night to figure out where to go from here. It’s flattering to be invited by Mayor Narkewicz to help draft the Request for Proposal (RFP) for …
This small business could use fiber to the home
One of us, Mark Hamill, owns a small business in Florence selling his internet services to clients over the web. Today he encountered an instance where Comcast’s slow upload speeds …