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Grand Junction Will Vote to Reclaim Municipal Telecommunications Authority
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Grand Junction will join a number of other Colorado communities who asked voters for an exemption to SB 152 reports KKCO 11 News. Ballot measure 2A, asking voters to approve the city's right to provide Internet access and cable TV service will be decided in the April 7th election.
Measure 2A asks for a yes or no on the following question:
RESTORING AUTHORITY TO THE CITY TO PROVIDE EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY WITH PUBLIC OR PRIVATE SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS HIGH-SPEED INTERNET AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE SHALL THE CITY OF GRAND JUNCTION, WITHOUT INCREASING TAXES BY THIS MEASURE, BE AUTHORIZED TO PROVIDE, EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY WITH PUBLIC OR PRIVATE SECTOR PARTNER(S), HIGH-SPEED INTERNET SERVICES (ADVANCED SERVICE), TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND/OR CABLE TELEVISION SERVICES AS DEFINED BY §§29-27-101 TO 304 OF THE COLORADO REVISED STATUTES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY NEW AND IMPROVED HIGH BANDWIDTH SERVICE(S) BASED ON FUTURE TECHNOLOGIES, TO RESIDENTS, BUSINESSES, SCHOOLS, LIBRARIES, NONPROFIT ENTITIES AND OTHER USERS OF SUCH SERVICES, WITHOUT LIMITING ITS HOME RULE AUTHORITY?
Grand Junction, located on the western edge of the state, is home to approximately 147,000 people. Their interest in the SB 152 opt out generates from the need to be economically competitive with Longmont, Montrose, and the other Colorado towns that have already passed similar ballot measures.
The Daily Sentinel covered the region's broadband problems in a recent article:
“Broadband is not a selling point. It’s an expectation,” said Kelly Flenniken, director of the Grand Junction Economic Partnership. The group works on behalf of local entities to lure companies and increase business opportunities in the Grand Valley.
“It’s a modern day utility. It’s sort of like saying our roads are paved, too,” she said. “I really think from an economic development standpoint, it’s about maintaining a competitive position. If we’re trying to grow solo entrepreneurs, they’re going to want to live here. We want to make it so they can work here.”
Flenniken, whose office is located in downtown Grand Junction, said she tested upload speeds of her Internet recently and it showed a speed of less than 1 Mbps.
“The download speed was OK, but it could be way better,” she said. “When companies have to put documents on a flash drive or a CD-ROM and send it (in the mail), it’s not a sales pitch.”
Two years ago, The Business Incubator, a shared space for startups and other enitites, decided it was critical to bring high-speed Internet to the building. Fortunately, the U.S. Department of Energy also uses space on the campus and was willing to share in the $250,000 cost to install the infrastructure. Clients have access to 60 Mbps symmetrical for $65 per month from CenturyLink via that infrastructure.
Other businesses don't have the same options:
Seth Schaeffer of Hoptocopter Films runs his business out of a residential-based, but ultra-modern, building in the Grand Junction core near North Avenue.
Schaeffer said it’s not that the Internet speeds are terribly slow, but that the upload speeds don’t live up to the advertised speeds his company is paying for. And, service can be inconsistent. Sometimes it’s just more reliable to send something out on a cellphone.
“Right now, 4G on my cellphone is fast and that’s the workaround that everybody is using,” he said.
Schaeffer said his company has upgraded to Charter’s 60 Mbps service, but upgrading again to having 20 Mbps for both upload and download speed would work better. That would cost about $1,000 a month, he said.
“That’s a lot to swallow,” Schaeffer said. “It’s a ridiculous amount of money to have to spend. If we could get 5 Mbps up consistently and solid, we’d be OK.”
Obviously, it's time for changes in Grand Junction.
Local coverage on measure 2A:
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