Gateway Cities to bring $103 million regional fiber to Paramount, project to finish by late 2026

Hector D'Aletore, executive director of the Gateway Cities Council of Governments, told the Paramount City Council on Feb. 25 that a $103,000,000 regional fiber-optic network will run through Paramount and 24 other Gateway Cities, connecting 25 city halls and delivering multi-gigabit internet capacity.

The network is funded by two state awards: a $57 million grant from the California Department of Technology and $46 million from the California Public Utilities Commission, D'Aletore said. He said the system will carry 10 gigabits per second upload and download and that the project must be completed by December 2026 with no extension available.

D'Aletore showed a route map and said the regional build totals roughly 120 route miles. For Paramount specifically, he said the city is in the first of five designated build areas and that the local segment will include about 4.5 miles of fiber — 20,888 linear feet underground and 3,629 feet on utility poles. He told council there is no direct cost to the city for the fiber plant itself because the grant will cover construction, materials and project management.

Council members asked about how the project relates to prior state broadband funding and whether local institutions such as the school district are aware. D'Aletore said the $57 million CDT award resulted from recent state broadband appropriations and added that the Gateway Cities team will hold a workshop in late March or early April to walk elected officials through options for using the fiber once it is in place. He also said the team will share details with the district and invited council members to a later workshop to discuss connections for city facilities, schools or broader service expansions.

D'Aletore urged the city to prepare permitting, right-of-way agreements and traffic-management coordination because construction will involve trenching on arterials and some pole work. He said the COG will select a construction manager and an internet service partner and that the project team will push for a standardized right-of-way agreement for all participating cities to streamline the build.

The presentation concluded with an invitation to the March/April workshop and an outline of next steps for staff-level coordination. No final council action was required that night.