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City updates council on Durham Metropolitan Area Network and forthcoming fiber deployment
Summary
City IT staff briefed council on amendments to managed services for the existing network and a separate contract to light and operate new city fiber. Staff said the network will deliver at least gigabit connectivity to city buildings and described costs for a network operations center and ongoing monitoring.
City technology staff gave council an update on two items related to Durham’s Metropolitan Area Network: a routine amendment to the managed‑services agreement for existing equipment (switches, wireless access points and routine maintenance) and a separate contract to deploy and “light” the city’s fiber backbone.
Dwayne Kendall, assistant director of Technology Solutions, and Carrie Goode, director of Technical Solutions, said the first amendment covers ongoing maintenance and managed services for distributed network equipment across city facilities and is intended to provide 24/7 managed support more cost‑effectively than expanding in‑house staff for around‑the‑clock coverage.
The second item is a design/build and operations contract to deploy fiber and light the network — including an eventual network operations center (NOC) to monitor performance 24/7. Staff said Duke University and other local institutions already maintain similar operations; the city plans to partner for restoration/repair agreements where fiber is colocated. Staff noted recurring costs for monitoring and NOC operations in addition to one‑time deployment costs.
Council members expressed interest in the project as a unique municipal infrastructure investment, asked about recurring costs and asked staff to return with more detail on operating expenses and procurement steps. Staff said every city building will have at least a gigabit connection once fiber is lit and emphasized the project’s long‑term value for city operations and resilience.
Ending: Staff will provide additional cost detail on operations and monitoring and follow the procurement and contract amendment process to move the fiber deployment into the implementation phase.
