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Council asked to authorize letters of support for broadband funding applications
Summary
Staff asked the council to consider sending letters of support for Comcast and for an open-access county network; the letters would support state broadband grant scoring and are part of a larger state funding opportunity.
City staff told the St. Helens City Council on April 16 that Comcast requested a letter of support for its state broadband funding application related to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program and that the county-led open-access project would also request support.
The staff presentation explained the state application awards points to applicants that can show commitments from anchor institutions and local partners. Comcast and the county’s RSG (regional service group) application seek letters to strengthen competitiveness for a portion of state broadband funding the staff described as a large statewide allocation for underserved properties.
Staff recommended the council could authorize letters of support and noted the city has been coordinating with the county and RSG on open-access planning. One councilor said she would support both private- and public-network applications, describing the need exposed by the pandemic: “COVID was a big eye opener for all of us who had to do everything online.”
No formal vote was recorded in the work session; staff indicated authorization could be handled administratively if the council wished to proceed.
