As we talk about bringing better connectivity to the Calais and Baileyville, Maine communities, we mention the use of an open access fiber network. Our approach is slightly different however, in that we are going to be deploying dark fiber to homes and businesses. What is dark fiber?
September 13th – For the past year, Downeast Broadband has been working to bring fiber optic Internet access to the communities of Baileyville and Calais. Part of the project includes obtaining permission from the owners of the utility poles to attach the fiber. All of the poles in question are owned by either Consolidated Communications or Eastern Maine Electric Cooperative – except for one…
Within the state of Maine, communities are beginning to discuss the benefits of installing citywide fiber optic broadband. Bangor, the third largest city in Maine, is the most recent community to vocalize this need. The City’s first step was to formally declare that fiber optic broadband is an essential addition to its overall infrastructure. The Read More
August 13th – Saw the culmination of months of negotiations with pole owners to reach an agreement to attach to the poles. Eastern Maine Electric Cooperative, Consolidated Communications (pole owners) and Downeast Broadband signed off on the official “Pole Attachment Agreement.” The Maine Public Utilities Commission gave their approval to attach in early March. We Read More
In 2015, a group of local community leaders began meeting regularly to discuss ways of revitalizing the area’s stagnant economy. After deciding that active recruitment of new businesses was a good first step, they created a detailed list of regional assets that could be attractive to new employers, employees and their families. Although the list Read More
July 31st – We have just received notification from Consolidated Communications (owners of the utility poles) that they are ready for us to begin pole survey work! We will be surveying over 2,000 utility poles to determine which poles are ready for attachment and which poles need some pre-attachment work. Next up, we string the fiber!
A recent study by the Blandin Foundation, an organization focused on improving rural areas in Minnesota, has demonstrated that rural communities realize economic benefits from the deployment of high-speed Internet. Although the study focused on rural counties in Minnesota and West Virginia, the results can be applied to all rural communities- including Baileyville and Calais, Maine.
Downeast Broadband Utility has been fortunate enough to partner with the Post Road Foundation, a nonprofit that values the link between sustainability and broadband internet connectivity. They’re focused on studying and researching the anticipated benefits of fiber optic technology within communities, particularly what needs to be done to yield greater energy savings, lower costs, and Read More
News of our project is spreading, and here at Downeast Broadband we’re excited to have some great opportunities to share what we’re doing to help the Baileyville and Calais, Maine communities! Earlier this month our DBU director, Julie Jordan, got to talk in depth about our initiative for accessible high-speed broadband internet on the Community Read More
Are you curious about what we’ve been up to here at Downeast Broadband Utility? At the end of last month we headed to the Maine Broadband Coalition Conference at Thomas College in Waterville. Julie had the opportunity to join representatives from various communities that all had one goal in common: to improve internet speed and Read More