The Process

When will the project be completed?

We hope to be connecting the first customers in Fall 2009 and to have “passed” (i.e made service available) to every home in the participating towns on or about the end of 2010.

What are towns being asked to do now?

Select Boards should arrange for a public meeting prior to Town Meeting to enable representatives of ECFiberNet and ValleyNet to answer their questions. It would also be helpful for Select Boards to distribute pre-subscription forms to all households, businesses and other institutions in the town.

The next step in the process is to join participating towns to form an appropriate “Municipal Entity” to take responsibility for obtaining financing and contracting with ValleyFiber to execute the project.. While Select Boards can enter into such an agreement without action at a town meeting, ECFiberNet is recommending that Select Boards add a resolution to the warning for the March 2008 town meeting. This will enable all citizens to have opportunities to learn more about the project and to make an informed choice. The suggested warning is for a resolution that supports participating in the joint Municipal Entity for the purpose of building a universal community-owned Fiber-to-the-Home network.

What else could Select Boards do to encourage support for the project?

1) Select boards should appoint 2 or 3 local people who have some knowledge of the technical, legal, financial, or organizational aspects of this proposal, to answer questions from the public. ECFiberNet has committee members willing to serve in this capacity.

2) ECFiberNet has pre-subscription forms that Select boards can distribute. Towns with the highest pre-subscription rates may be able to get priority in the connection schedule (subject to technical feasibility); 3) Select boards can arrange a general public information meeting prior to Town Meeting Day, for ECFiberNet to make a presentation and answer questions. This should be coordinated with our Community Outreach Committee so that we can provide information resources to each public meeting.

Then what?

Once a Municipal entity is established, feasibility and engineering studies will be completed and further due diligence performed. The Entity will then: a) secure financing; b) negotiate a contract with ValleyFiber to build and operate the network; and, c) obtain the necessary State regulatory approvals from the Public Service Board. If all goes well, project design and engineering would begin as early as Fall 2008. In that event, the first customers could be online by Fall 2009 and the network should be accessible to every customer in the participating towns by the end of 2010—in line with the E-State goals expressed by the Governor and the Legislature.

The project timeline is as follows:
January - March 2008: Community information meetings and pre-subscription campaign
March: Town vote/participation commitment/ILA and DBO agreements signed
April – June: Seek financing; close by end of August
August - September: Network design begins
January - March 2009: Construction begins
September - December: Pre-subscribers connected first; roll out connections of all other subscribers

How can I help or volunteer?

What if the town meeting vote in my town is NO?

The town’s select board will probably choose not to participate in the project. That doesn’t mean that the project will not go forward, only that a network will not be built in that town. It is possible that a cable would run through the town if necessary to connect to a participating town. It also doesn’t mean the town is permanently excluded from the project.

How can I get involved?

Show your support for this project by indicating your (non-binding) intention to take service by submitting a ECFiberNet pre-registration. Financiers view a strong level of pre-registrations as a very good indication of likely demand. We also hope to provide service most quickly (starting in fall 2009) to those towns and neighborhoods with the highest percentage of households pre-registering.

Tell your neighbors. Let them know about this website and www.ECFiber.net as a way to find out more about the project. Print out this pre-registration form and carry a stack around with you in your car, your pocket, your purse. Practice your one-minute "elevator" pitch on everyone you meet - "hi, did you know we may be able to get a community-owned fiber optic network covering everyone in our town with no burden to taxpayers. You can pre-register for service using this form or go online to find out more."

If you need a lot of forms, write to us (or call, or email) at:

East Central Vermont Community Fiber Network
c/o ValleyNet
58 North Main Street
PO Box 486
White River Junction, VT 05001
(802) 359-4162
info@ecfiber.net

If you're lucky, we might send you a "got fiber?" bumper sticker too.

East Central Vermont Community Fiber Network
Frequently Asked Questions
November 17, 2008