By Susan MacEachron

Kim Maxwell, chair of the Fiber Optic Study Committee, told the Board of Finance at a special meeting on Feb. 24 that Norfolk could be the first town in Connecticut to provide broadband access to all. Maxwell said that high speed internet access provided by a fiber optic cable network would be reliable, economical and able to support current and future demand.  

Maxwell provided estimates of the time it would take to accomplish the various stages of development. Based on optimistic assumptions, the town would be ready to start connecting individual homes in January 2023. The first step is an engineering study required to file applications to use Norfolk’s 2,100 utility poles. It is likely that some poles might need to be replaced, and all poles would require work to make room for new wires. Maxwell said it could take up to a year for Eversource and Frontier to accomplish this task. 

Board of Finance members asked him numerous questions about costs. Maxwell said that he is working to raise $2.5 million over five years from private donors to lessen the financial burden on the town, and that he already has commitments for 50 percent of that amount. He estimated the town will need to borrow $4 million to complete the project. He noted that the private funding will cover the debt service for the next several years, and estimates the cost to the town, once the private funds are exhausted, would be approximately $200,000 per year. He bases his estimates on financing the debt over 30 years. 

Maxwell said once the broadband was operational, the monthly cost to a household would be approximately $75. It was pointed out that the service does not provide broadcast stations, so residents who want access to content not available from a streaming service would have to pay an additional monthly cost to a broadcast provider. Norfolk residents would not be required to buy the monthly broadband service, but all residents would share the costs of providing this service through their property taxes, just as the cost of maintaining the town roads is a shared expense.

The annual Board of Finance budget hearing will be held near the end of April, where all aspects of the proposed budget for fiscal year 2021-22 will be discussed.