Community Broadband Connectivity

The city’s vision is to provide a world-class community telecommunications infrastructure to Boulder for the 21st Century and beyond. Broadband connectivity is a critical infrastructure service for quality of modern life, as is the case with roads, water, sewer and electricity. This asset will be used for city and select community purposes, rather than provide public services in the short term. In the long term, this infrastructure could support gigabit speed internet services to homes and various city applications.

A ‘fiber backbone’ is the critical infrastructure needed to deliver high-quality fiber-based internet service to all members of the community. This fully city-owned asset will be deployed in a number of ways to achieve our connected city goals. The backbone construction is now complete.

The backbone itself will not bring ubiquitous broadband connectivity, but rather it will provide a platform for the city and its partners to deliver internet services through various mediums that best match the needs of our many stakeholders.

The City of Boulder is seeking proposals from potential service providers interested in offering high-capacity broadband services to residential and commercial retail customers within the city.

The City of Boulder released a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking potential service providers interested in offering high-capacity broadband services to residential and commercial retail customers within the city.

Construction of the fiber optic backbone complete.

In October, Council voted 9-0 to move forward with a partnership model for the delivery of retail internet using up to half of our backbone capacity and the partner building and owning the last mile infrastructure.

October 2023 Council Update

Earlier in the year staff outlined three broad options to offer affordable fiber-based internet to every home and business in Boulder. They are:

• A municipal internet utility
• A shared-equity public-private partnership
• A lease of city-owned backbone assets + right of way (ROW) agreement with a private partner

Given the significant cost, high risk, and long expected time-to-market of the first two options, staff recommended the city proceed with the third option. This approach, like the first two, promises to meet the goals of citywide access, equity & inclusiveness, future-oriented, net neutrality, competitive marketplace, and consumer privacy, while also minimizing cost and risk to the city and reaching customers the fastest.

Community Broadband Analysis August 2023

January 2023 Council Update

Construction of the fiber backbone over 71% complete.

Construction of the fiber backbone 53% complete.

Zayo was selected as the contractor. By March construction of the fiber backbone was put on due to the City’s response to Covid-19. Construction resumed in June and was at 20% at the end of the year.

Magellan Advisors completed the fiber optic backbone design.

Additional funding for high priority network laterals in addition to dark fiber broadband backbone was approved. Fiber and Broadband Presentation to Council and April 23, 2019 Council Meeting Minutes

Council approval to issue Certificates of Participation to fund the construction. August 6, 2019 Council Meeting Minutes

Council directed staff to proceed with analysis of broadband options who later in the year presented five possible broadband models, including the option to refrain from moving forward at all. Staff presented broadband business models, costs, the relationship between broadband and municipalization, potential take rates and examples of cities that have different broadband models. Council expressed interest in proceeding with construction of a fiber backbone to begin implementing the project’s goals and preserve the city’s future options for several different broadband business models. They unanimously passed a motion to proceed with development of a fiber backbone in support of the city’s broadband goals.