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Broadband advocates urge installation of $10M system [Missoulian (MT)](Missoulian (MT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) If Missoula wants to compete in the 21st century and stop its "brain drain" to more competitive cities, it needs to move past its 20th century infrastructure and create an open-access fiber-optic network. Advocates of installing a $10 million next-generation broadband system in Missoula say doing so will help local businesses compete with outside markets and give the city's burgeoning high-tech sector a chance to grow. They also believe a high-speed and reliable system is essential if Missoula County Public Schools is to deliver a 21st century education. University of Montana students could benefit as well if local government created a seamless transition between the linked-up campus and the surrounding community. "To stay competitive within Montana, let alone regionally, it's not enough to have a high quality of living," said Caitlin Copple, chair of the Missoula City Council's Economic Development Subcommittee. "We don't have time to waste. We need to retain our best and brightest and maintain a climate that's conducive to growing our tech businesses here." Copple and Marcy Allen, executive director of the Bitter Root Economic Development District, asked the city's Committee of the Whole on Wednesday to recommend a broadband working group to explore the opportunities and challenges of developing such a system. As proposed at the meeting, the working group would consist of city, county, business, education, economic development and health care leaders. The committee took no action on the request. "It's a way to make a game-changing difference in creating high-paying jobs in our community," Copple said. "But the train is leaving the station. Butte is already pursing this and is ahead, and Bozeman is a year out from beginning construction." Alex Philp, founder and president of GCS, said successful communities have already moved beyond the debate over broadband costs and have or are now taking action. The longer city leaders debate the needs, he said, the further behind Missoula will fall. That will cost local businesses opportunities to grow while hurting their chances to attract new investors and skilled workers. "This discussion wouldn't be happening in cities that care about commerce," Philp said. "The university is committed to the 21st century, our public schools want to be in the 21st century, and businesses that want to stay here need to be able to compete in the 21st century." Hatton Littman, communications director with MCPS, agreed. She told the committee that Missoula has already asked for a 21st century model of education, one where access to fast and reliable Internet services are assured. She said the school district is committed to participating in the working group and moving the proposal forward. "It's essential. This allows us to deliver on our goals for a 21st century model of education," she said. "We can't get there unless we create a partnership that allows faster and more reliable access." Businesses that currently provide Internet service agreed that a working group should be formed to explore the community's broadband needs. But they also asked that the group include service providers for input. Bill Squires, CEO of the Blackfoot Telecommunications Group, and Jeremy Ferkin, vice president of CenturyLink, said their companies have made large and costly investments to improve local services. Both business leaders said the fiber-optics now being discussed are already in place. They cautioned the committee against trying to duplicate networks, saying it could put workers out of jobs and place taxpayers at risk. "If you don't have service providers as part of a working group, you're going to get the conclusion that you need to build your own network," Ferkin said. "All you're doing is taking jobs and investment away from private enterprise." Ferkin also said the city's fees were among the highest his company deals with. "You don't have a fiber issue," he said. "The fiber is already here." As proposed, the network would connect 50 public entities across Missoula. It would be installed in phases and the costs would likely require a $10 million investment on behalf of the city and county. But the costs to local government would decrease over time as customers connect to the open-access system. Early estimates suggest revenues would include just $310,000 in 2016 but reach roughly $1.6 million by 2024. Copple said several large anchors have already expressed a need for the system, including MCPS, the university, hospitals and tech firms that need big-data capabilities to compete with outside markets. "We could finance this in municipal bonds," Copple said. "There's no tax increase to the public. The investment by city and county would be tremendous in leveraging federal and state grants." 4 (c) 2014 The Missoulian |