As Redding, California, aims to bring better connectivity to businesses and residents, they're looking to locals for advice on how to move forward.

As we reported in April, community leaders voted to proceed with a pilot project in their downtown area. Economic development in the downtown area drove the plan, but reducing the cost of Internet access through a publicly owned network and the availability of a more reliable, faster service generated force behind the project. 

In April, the city council decided to explore possibilities and now they're interested in finding out the public's interest in a citywide network for residents. The Vice Mayor, City Manager, and staff from Redding held a public meeting in late November to share information with locals about possibilities. 

"Fiber is an essential element of the future and its economy," Tippin said. "Vice Council Macaulay brought this forward to council and we agreed that we should study this so we've hired consultants and we've been doing a study - looking into cost, what elements should be required and whether it would be beneficial from a community standpoint." 

In order to determine the public's feelings on whether they agree Tippin, the city is asking Redding residents to complete a simple online survey. The survey is six questions about perceived value, current options, and respondents' likelihood of supporting a municipal fiber optic network project.

An Existing Advantage

Unlike many other California cities, Redding owns a municipal electric utility, which provides an advantage in both deployment, potential lowered cost, and ease in operations for a municipal utility. According to the city's Master Broadband Plan, the city bought the Redding Electric Utility (REU) from PG&E in 1921 and serves around 44,000 residential and commercial...

It’s been a journey of discovery for the folks in "Villageville," our fictional rural community where Internet access isn't meeting the needs of residents or businesses. In Episode 5 of "From Crops to Co-ops: Small Towns Want Better Internet!", we learn more about the work rural cooperatives are doing for communities across the country.

Grumpy Gary and Entrepreneur Emily have met up in "Sizeable City," a nearby community that decided to invest in a municipal network. It has paid off in the usual ways -- better Internet access, more jobs, lowered telecommunications costs. In addition to enjoying some java and some jokes (we use the term loosely), they meet up with a representative from the electric cooperative to discuss high-quality Internet access options.

During the conversation, we hear more about the ways cooperatives are serving people in rural areas and why it makes sense that they're delivering fiber optic connectivity. Watch for more pop-up facts about municipal networks, cooperatives, and how both are serving rural communities. Listen to the cooperative's pilot project strategy and be sure to watch through to the end to hear about the final outcome in Villageville.

As with other episodes of "From Crops to Co-ops: Small Towns Want Better Internet!", you'll hear past and present voices from the Very Amateur Acting Troupe of the Community Broadband Networks Initiative along with other Institute for Local Self-Reliance talent (again we use the term loosely). We encourage you to share these videos to help spread the word about municipal networks, cooperatives, and the fact that rural communities don't have to be "stuck" with poor Internet access.

If you haven't seen episodes 1 - 4, check them out below, read the backstories, or view them all on our Videos page.

Share the series playlist, where you can see all the episodes from Villageville, U.S.A.

You can get caught up on the saga here with ...

By now, you’ve met the people of “Villageville,” the imaginary town in rural America that, like many similarly situated communities, are struggling to find better connectivity. This week, we continue our soap opera saga “From Crops to Co-ops: Small Towns Want Better Internet.”

In this episode, the kids of the community are working on another big homework assignment and gather together at the neighbor’s house to tap into his satellite Internet access. Watch to find out the results when Grumpy Gary tells the kids to “get off his lawn.”

In rural areas with low population density, large corporate Internet access providers don’t find the motivation they need to invest in fast, affordable, reliable connectivity. High numbers of residents and businesses depend on satellite Internet access as a last resort. Plans are expensive, unreliable, and typically include data caps. In episode 3, we include pop-up information about satellite Internet access and how communities who must use it settle for less than they deserve.

Don’t miss another opportunity to hear the Very Amateur Acting Troupe from the Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance fill the roles of local people who are just trying to get online to get stuff done.

If you want to get caught up first, read up on the storyline from episode 1 here or watch it below. You can also check out the synopsis of episode 2 and watch it below to experience the whole story from the start. Share the series playlist, where we'll continue to add episodes as we release them.

Next week we attend a city council meeting in Villageville in which residents and community leaders decide what to do about poor Internet access in their community. Don't miss it!

You can get caught up on the saga here with episode 1:

...

We recently introduced you to our informative and campy video series, “From Crops to Co-ops: Small Towns Want Better Internet!” In episode 2, we continue the saga of “Villageville,” where the streets are quiet, the people are friendly, and the Internet access leaves much to be desired. Last time, you met some of the people who live in this rural community and discovered how they've dealt with substandard connectivity. People are getting a little fed up; could the wind be shifting in Villageville?

Don’t miss this chance to hear current and past members of the Community Broadband Networks Team try their hand at voiceover acting! We wanted to make this series fun and have fun making it, so you'll hear some familiar voices.

In episode 2, the town’s newest family, shocked and dismayed at Villageville’s poor connectivity, meet to the local librarian to discuss local options. Like students who need fast, affordable, reliable Internet access for homework, entrepreneurs in rural areas often find their business goals hindered if they move to a community forced to rely on outdated solutions like DSL.

As librarians often do, however, Villageville's has been researching the problem and shares her findings. She’s discovered some great information about rural cooperatives. In addition to the facts our local librarian shares, we’ve included pop-up data about cooperatives, connectivity, and economic development. The video is a great way for you to get people interested in learning more about the possibilities in your own rural community.

If you haven’t seen episode 1 yet, check out the synopsis here or watch it below and learn more about our cast of characters and their quest for better Internet access. Share the series playlist, where we'll continue to add episodes as we release them.

Need to get caught up? Here's episode 1: