After meeting in executive session for roughly an hour Monday evening, the Bridgeport City Council unanimously approved a resolution and an agreement that will allow Citynet to provide fiber optic cable to homes within the City of Bridgeport. The approval came quickly after the executive session, which the members went into to discuss matters allowed for such sessions.

 

With the resolution and agreement in place, the city has taken the first major step of expanding the “Gigaport” pilot project where residents get internet service through a gigabit or up to 100 times faster than what is standardly available. Currently, there are roughly 200 homes in Bridgeport in the pilot project that have access to super high speed internet that is provided through Citynet.

 

The step taken Monday sets the stage for an application for a $3 million loan from the West Virginia Economic Development Agency (EDA). The money would facilitate the installation of the super high speed internet service infrastructure to a large portion of the city over a shorter time frame as opposed to doing it in small phases.

 

“We’re really excited about this,” said Citynet CEO Jim Martin to Council after they emerged from behind closed doors. 

 

Even though a bulk project will be quicker, it will still take time. Martin estimated a three-year window to cover the city.

 

The resolution and agreement was able to be crafted after city, Citynet and state officials determined that the pilot project has been a success. That now paves the way for the formal application to be submitted to the EDA.

    

If approved, Mayor Robert “Bob” Greer has said that the risk to the city is minimal in that they will act as a guarantor on the loan. However, as part of the city’s private/public partnership with Citynet, the Bridgeport-based business will be responsible for paying off the loan. Citynet, Greer said, will pay off the loan with the fees charged for the new service.

 

City Manager Kim Haws hailed the step taken Monday evening as one that will have huge implications on Bridgeport. He also said it could be a precursor for other cities to do the same.

 

“It’s really beyond my comprehension of just how huge this could actually be for Bridgeport. I think in five years, even though we may not know scope of the impact, this entire network that would be created as a result of this will definitely impact what we’re capable of doing,” said Haws. “Basically, this is huge for residents and businesses because this will provide opportunities that we can’t even imagine.”