LEYDEN — The Leyden Broadband Committee anticipates spending $1,750,000 to bring broadband to the town’s 325 residences.
The committee has opened discussions with the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), who will manage all engineering and construction of the broadband network.
John Furey, construction manager for MBI, spoke about the project’s logistics to the Broadband Committee, Finance Committee and Selectboard during a July 8 meeting. He advised first collecting data on which utility poles in town would need the broadband lines strung, and replacing any that are deteriorating.
“Every pole you attach to is $13.51 per year,” Furey said.
Last year, the town made its final payment on a school bond note in the value of $63,000, and, at the annual town meeting on May 14, residents voted to set aside the same amount each year in a technology stabilization fund. Assuming a three-year period before the broadband network is up and running, the Broadband Committee hopes to utilize $170,000 of the $189,000 that will have been set aside to reduce the town’s planned borrowing for the project.
“We’re going to have a special town meeting to move monies over,” said Bob Ryan, chair of the Broadband Committee.
Leyden’s financial adviser, Clark Rowell of UniBank Fiscal Advisory Services, Inc., recommended the town seek state grants and loans, including the United States Department of Agriculture’s Farm Bill Broadband Loan. The town plans to receive a $680,000 grant and borrow $900,000.
“It’s the biggest project this town has ever absorbed,” said Jeffrey Neipp, chair of the Leyden Selectboard.
As an indication of broadband support, 140 residents have submitted $49 deposits to WiredWest, Neipp said. The Broadband Committee and the Selectboard feel that as implementation gets nearer, and when homes begin to get wired, more residents will express interest.
“We’re trying to get the subscription rate as high as possible so we can lower our costs,” Ryan said.
Furey estimates an initial cost to subscribers at $106 per month that will gradually decrease as the take rate increases.
The town is considering tying into Greenfield’s broadband network through inter-municipal agreements, and Mayor William Martin has indicated his support, Neipp said. However, the towns are still in preliminary discussions.
Neipp said that actual construction is still a year away.
Another facet for the town to consider is whether they will wire homes on dead end Leyden roads that cross into Guilford, Vt. Neipp proposed doing a cost analysis of whether it would benefit the town of Leyden to add those homes to its network, and if so, entering a municipal agreement with Guilford.
Furey arranged to hold a public presentation at Leyden Town Hall at 10 a.m., Aug. 3, when he will explain the technology involved in the project and next steps.