Politics & Government

Wildwood Moves Forward on Final Agreement for High-Speed Internet

Residents of the city's most rugged rural areas may not have to wait much longer to access the modern Web.

For Wildwood residents eager to be connected to high-speed Internet access, the wait might seem as interminable as the buffering screens they see when trying to stream online video.  

However, on Monday, the Wildwood City Council approved the first reading of what will be the final agreement with the two service providers, Wisper ISP and Bays ET, contracted to finally bring the technology to city's rural areas. 

In presenting the agreement to the council, which sets the responsibilities and duties of the companies and the city, Wildwood Planning and Parks Director Joe Vujnich said it contained a couple of key provisions that were worth highlighting.

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The first is that the companies will each be charged a licensing fee to recoup the city’s costs for purchasing and erecting the 10 utility poles, something that was sought by council members.

Once the poles are placed, Wisper ISP and Bays ET will pay for the installation of the necessary equipment to transmit the wireless high-speed signal.

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According to the agreement, the companies will be assessed $4.50 per pole, per customer on a quarterly basis. The city has previously said it plans to spend around $90,000 on the purchase of the 16 poles.

Second, Vujnich said the providers will pay for all utility charges will the maintenance of the pole will essentially be split. The city will be responsible for the grounds around the structure while the businesses will be responsible for the pole itself.

Finally, the terms of the agreement is five years, which Vujnich said is necessary to "give ample assurance to the two providers that the city is committed to this effort.”

The agreement means the long search for Internet access to some of Wildwood’s most rugged rural areas is in its final stage. However, in a memo prepared for the city council, Vujnich said the development of the pole locations and the authorizations needed to construct them is still “a major work area” for the city.

According to a previous city documents, the plan is to have at least 10 poles erected. So far, five sites have been identified in the north half of the city to be operated by Wisper ISP and four in the south half to be run by Bays ET. One of the four, located along Fox Creek Road, is preliminary and still under review.

While some of the poles sites would be located in land where the city already owns easement rights, many are own private property, which means that its owners must be contacted and easements must be granted.

For more information, you can view the memo given to the city council online at Wildwood’s website or see the PDF attached to this article.

Vujnich added that there were several more "oustanding comments," which will be addressed in the three weeks leading up to the next city council meeting. 

Read previous articles on this topic:

  • 10 High-Speed Internet Access Poles to Come in Wildwood
  • Wildwood Is Looking for an Internet Provider – Again
  • High Speed Internet for Rural Wildwood: Not So Fast!
  • Internet in Rural Wildwood is Rolling Out

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