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Onalaska awards $112,076 telecom contract to tie city fiber into WiscNet
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Summary
The board approved a $112,076.60 contract with 5 Star Telecom to run city fiber into the WiscNet network via the Ultra Federal Credit Union building, which staff said would replace a slower Charter connection and drop ongoing costs.
The Onalaska Board of Public Works and Utilities voted April 7 to award a contract to 5 Star Telecom to install fiber that will connect city facilities to the WiscNet statewide network.
Staff said the project ties city fiber from 11th Avenue and Wilson Street to the Ultra Federal Credit Union building, which connects into WiscNet, allowing the city to move from a Charter Internet connection to a higher‑capacity state network. The low quote from 5 Star Telecom was $112,076.60; staff said the city budgeted $120,000 in the capital improvements budget to cover the work.
Jared Holter explained that Ultra will allow only certain providers into its building, and 5 Star was the sole provider able to complete the interconnect. Holter said the new connection would provide roughly 10 Mbps (staff phrased it as a ten‑fold increase over the current 1 Mbps city link), reduce annual connection charges to a fraction of current Charter billing, and retain a slower backup connection for redundancy.
Board members asked about service charges and customer access; staff said the fiber would be for city use and would not be sold to the public. The contract was approved by voice vote and recorded as unanimously supported.
