With the support of the City Council, Avon, OH is one step closer to installing a fiber-optic broadband internet system. At the Council’s most recent meeting, council members heard a presentation from broad provider Lit Communications outlining a business plan that would allow the town to install a fiber network. As The Chronicle reports, the presentation was well received prompting the Council to look towards their next order of business, drafting an RFP.
Lit Communications recommended that the town seek a Private-Public Partnership that would allow them to operate in conjunction with a private provider. The forthcoming Request for Proposal will detail the scope of the fiber project along with the anticipated $40 million cost. Interested companies would be asked to focus on the “last mile” installation, according to Lit Communications’ plan, with the town of Avon delivering the middle mile infrastructure. Avon’s costs were estimated at $5,636,690, with the bulk of the expenses going to the RFP bid winner. However, future maintenance costs would be equally shared between the town and the provider.
“We all just want to do what’s best for Avon, and luckily we’re in a position where we get to hear and learn and entertain what that might be,” said Councilwoman Tammy Holtzmeier. “I’m cautiously optimistic, with an emphasis on cautious. It’s one thing to be excited about something, but I always want to look at ‘how are we going to pay for it and [whether] it will sustain itself.’”
The source notes that some council members were hesitant to move forward with the plan to install over 923,000 feet of underground fiber and over 48,621 feet of above-ground cables without knowing the exact cost of the project beforehand. Speaking in favor of the RFP, Mayor Bryan Jensen stated, “I think that without taking the next step, you’re not going to know. You’ll never know what it’s going to cost or what you need to do. I think this is kind of a small cost to figure out what that is and have a real figure in front of you for the Council to make a wise decision.”
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