Hotchkiss/County Broadband Internet Process Confused – TDS’s, Bill Long, Has Concerns, Claims Valley Already Has 25mbs Broadband

Hotchkiss/County Broadband Internet Process Confused

TDS’s, Bill Long, Has Concerns, Claims Valley Already

Has 25mbs Broadband

By Thomas Wills

Hotchkiss Town Council

Worksession on Broadband Issues

October 1, 2015

Present:  Mayor Wendell Koontz, Tom Wills (both as reporter and Town trustee, Larry Jakubiak (trustee), Dustyn Foster (Trustee), Town Clerk Marlene Searle, Deputy Clerk – Ginger Redden, Marshal Dan Miller, Public Works Director – Mike Owens,  Bill Long (regional operations manager- TDS Telecom – also Hotchkiss Chamber VP), Carrie Yantzer (principal – Hotchkiss K-8), Doug Fritz (Hotchkiss Fire Department –Chief), Paul Rodriguez (HHS – principal) plus a School District IT specialist.

It is all about bringing true Internet broadband speeds (25 mbs plus) into the Valley and Towns at a price that is affordable for individual and businesses. It was revealed at a September 29 Hotchkiss Town Council meeting  how the $5.5 million DOLA grant for upgrading Delta County Internet services would be used but installing fiber-optic cable backbones from the DMEA middle-mile locations (usually the nearest DMEA substation) into municipalities.  Delta County asked for the Town’s input, by October 9, in determining where (the Town) wanted Consumer Neutral Locations (CNL), which are the end points  with equipment on the fiber lines where TDS, DMEA or any internet service provider could then hook on to run fiber to home and businesses.   Mayor Koontz immediately determined that a worksession was needed with other stakeholders to determine where such locations should be located and who would be willing to host them.

Confusingly, at a previous August Hotchkiss Council meeting DMEA requested support for a tentative proposal for them to extend fiber from their substations to every home and business, thus putting the electric cooperative in the ISP business. According to a September 19 statement by DMEA board member and broadband proponent John Gavin, at a Delta County Democratic party BBQ, the DMEA board has yet to determine if they want to proceed with being in the ISP business, apparently now consisting of providing that last mile as well as their fiber infrastructure from their substations all the way to a “point of presence” POP at Albuquerque, New Mexico. By September 24 it appears that their stance was even mushier.

At a second August meeting the Hotchkiss Council joined with most of the municipalities in the county in placing a question on the November ballot that asks voters to allow the Town to opt out of Senate Bill 2005-152, which keeps local governmental entities from going into the telecommunication business on their own or even from partnering with private entities in providing such services, including Internet service without a citizen vote allowing the entity to “opt out” of the restriction. Without a positive vote on the issue no local government funds or in-kinds donations (like no/low cost rights of ways) could be done to facilitate bringing in faster, more affordable Internet service for the last mile to homes and businesses.

Mayor Wendell Koontz began the meeting by emphasizing that the Town is Hotchkiss is not interested in being in the broadband business but is interested in facilitating bringing in (true) broadband service if possible.  He said that he was making this clear especially to TDS, whose regional operations manager, Bill Long of Redlands Mesa, was present. Also present were representatives of the schools and fire department.

Although the meeting was supposed to be for the purpose of determining specific CNL node points so that Delta County could come up with a solider preliminary budget for grant paperwork, the meeting was dominated by TDS regional operations manager, Bill Long, who immediately cast doubt on the entire project. Among his claims:  DMEA’s 40% share of an existing fiber line to the POP at Albuquerque is inadequate being only “two fibers”,  how much would it cost the Town/entities to host CNL equipment and service? And a concern that some of what is being proposed would duplicate what TDS already has in place—overbuilding.  Long stated that TDS could already provide 25 mbs service in some areas, but later admitted that some such service (i.e. 25 mbs x 25 mbs up and down) was very expensive.  DMEA had previously estimated that true consumer broadband service (25×5) could be done for roughly the same as what TDS charges for (up to) 5 mbs down service (up to) 1 mbs upload  (about $50 a month for commercial).  Long said that TDS currently has a 2gb(gigabyte) fiber pipeline coming into the area, but ideally would like 10gb.

“If Region 10 could provide that,” Long said. “I’d be their first customer.” He said he has asked Region 10 numerous times how they could best partner with them without duplication but had received no satisfactory answer to date.

“We’d love to lease dark fiber to underserved areas (where no fiber is presently),” Long said.

Long then talked about how an area in Utah got into trouble with governmental run internet (UTOPIA) funded by taxpayer backed bonds. No one in Delta County is suggesting that the government goes into the internet business, but are considering helping to subsidize the necessary infrastructure by providing some matching funds to the DOLA grant.

He read a letter from a “local businessman” (Note: with an anti-government bent.)  who opposes the opt-out vote since he thinks ISP’s should be left to private companies.

No representatives from DMEA or Region 10 were present to clarify/counter Long’s input.  Representatives from the schools and fire department were interested in better service but were understandably non-committal on paying a share of extending the fiber and paying for the node equipment since they would need applicable board approval.

Trustee Dustyn Foster gave an overview of a September 24 meeting when Delta County met with municipalities and other stakeholders where they asked the Town to refine a list of some 9 possible node points for the initial fiber backbone within the town.  The initial guess at the Town share of a grant match would be $171,000 with Delta County contributing $54,000 of this amount if all of the seven identified CNL nodes were done. According to Town Clerk Marlene Searle, the amount would be reduced if fewer nodes were requested. She noted that the original figure was well outside of the Town’s budget.

In conversation at the October 1 meeting it appeared the Town was thinking of cost sharing on only one or two nodes, if any, and are asking the other entities (schools, library and fire department) to step up with funding if they wish to host a node.  Long’s information also threw a bit of information confusion into the process.

The Trustees, at their October 8 meeting, will consider approving a letter to the County identifying the nodes but also making it doubly clear that the Town is not committing any funds to the project at this time. Much more information is needed before any decision about money can be made.  Some of them:  How much can the Town afford compared to the benefit. Is the project duplicating what TDS would eventually do anyway? What would be the Town’s cost share with only two nodes?  (Note: total costs would be $11 per foot to lay FO cable and $5,400 for each CNL node minus the grant amount and the county sharing amount.) If the Town did a couple nodes and no other in-town entity joined in, would it still be worthwhile?  If no private entity commits to completing the final mile of fiber to homes/businesses wouldn’t the immediate benefit be minimal? What kind of real speed could be gotten from the DMEA fiber to Albuquerque even with TDS completing the last mile?  What would the consumer pricing be? What would the month to month cost of the Town maintaining one or two active nodes with equipment be?  Who owns the equipment? If we host a node does that mean we get service (i.e.to Senior Center with an open public node)?  How much speed and at what cost?