Hot Springs staff recommend 5-year dark-fiber lease renewal with Resort Television, including $15,000 installation for a new location

The Hot Springs Board reviewed a staff recommendation to renew a five-year lease with Resort Television Cable Inc. for dark-fiber service that links multiple remote city facilities to the primary downtown service location.

Information Systems Director Jeff Winter described the service as providing point-to-point network connections for six locations (largely water and sewer treatment plants and other remote sites) and said the proposal adds one new location and removes a previous one; the package includes monthly fees (staff cited $480 per month per location multiplied over 60 months in staff calculations) and a one-time installation fee of about $15,000 for the new Whittington location. Winter told the board alternative vendors were considered but were either more expensive or did not meet required performance.

Why it matters: The dark-fiber connections carry the city’s server and operational traffic; continuity and performance affect utility operations and customer-facing systems.

What was said: Winter described the sites as largely treatment plants and remote locations that support server connectivity: "This is how all the servers work... this is how the Internet works," he said, explaining the technical need. He added the costs were budgeted for 2026 and staff recommended board approval.

What happens next: Staff recommended the board approve the contract at a future business meeting; no final action was taken during this agenda-review session.