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Planning Board approves $186,400 for public Wi‑Fi upgrades at two community hubs
Summary
The Stamford Planning Board unanimously approved a $186,400 supplemental capital appropriation to expand free high‑speed public Wi‑Fi at the Latham Weider Community Center and the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford, part of a federally funded digital‑equity grant requiring 1 Gbps symmetrical service.
The Stamford Planning Board unanimously approved a $186,400 supplemental capital appropriation to extend and upgrade public Wi‑Fi at two community hubs.
The appropriation (project C65201) will fund equipment and installation at the Latham Weider Community Center and the Boys and Girls Club of Stamford, the board was told. The project is part of a federally funded digital‑equity initiative that requires vendors to deliver one gigabit per second symmetrical speeds, officials said.
“My name is Prashant Tangerala. I’m the chief information officer of the city of Stamford,” Tangerala said while outlining technical requirements and the oversight plan. He said the city’s information technology department will oversee the work with implementation support from the Stamford Partnership.
Tangerala told the board that the Latham Weider site already has city fiber, while the Boys and Girls Club at 347 Stillwater Avenue does not. He said the team expects to run city fiber to the Boys and Girls Club if feasible; otherwise the project could use a leased‑route model but that would change the grant budget treatment.
Board members asked about site ownership and whether the federal grant had been approved. Tangerala confirmed the grant is approved and provided a funding breakdown: access points, routers and installation; he said about $30,000 of a $74,000 installation line item is for the fiber work at the site that lacks city fiber.
Work is slated to begin after local approvals; Tangerala said fiber extension is expected to start in January and the grant’s execution deadline is June 2026. The city expects to use qualified vendors that meet the grant’s speed requirements and to monitor signal strength before declaring the sites live.
A board member (Jeremy) moved to approve the appropriation; a second was recorded via chat. The board raised hands and the motion passed unanimously.
The board’s approval directs staff to proceed with the grant‑funded upgrades and incorporate the appropriation into the city’s capital plan. Officials said outreach will follow once network performance is confirmed.
