Oakland Secures $15 Million Grant To Bring Broadband Into Underserved Neighborhoods

After two years enmeshed in the work of coalition-building, speed test data collection, and pushing state leaders to invest in better telecommunication infrastructure across Oakland’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods, digital equity advocates in the East Bay city are finally seeing the fruits of their labor pay off. The city was recently awarded a $15 million grant from the state’s $2 billion dollar Federal Funding Account, administered by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). The grant will fund the construction of a city-owned, open-access, hybrid middle-mile/last-mile fiber network. Courtesy of the federal American Rescue Plan, the infusion of cash will allow the city to deploy nearly 13 miles of new middle-mile, 144-count fiber, upgrade almost 12 miles of existing city-owned fiber, and add 9 miles of new last-mile fiber connections. As the city’s network is built, it will be connected to the state’s new massive open-access, middle-mile network now under construction. The Oakland project not only paves the way for the city to connect 14 community anchor institutions (CAIs) and nine public safety buildings, it will also expand high-speed Internet access to thousands of unserved and underserved addresses in West and East Oakland.