Syracuse, New York Votes to Provide Low Cost Fixed Wireless Broadband to Low Income Households

City officials in Syracuse (NY) have formally approved a new project to provide heavily discounted wireless broadband to low-income city residents. The plan is being made possible courtesy of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), $123 million of which has been doled out to Syracuse city leaders for various urban improvement efforts. After issuing a request for proposals (RFP) in 2022, Syracuse officials say they’ve selected Community Broadband Networks FLX to help build the fledgling, city-owned network. City officials say the finished project, estimated to be completed by the end of 2023 summer, should cover 10 Census tracts in the south, southwest, and west sides of the city for a total project cost of around $3.5 million. Once completed, the network should provide wireless broadband service at speeds up to 100 megabits per second (Mbps) to roughly 2,500 Syracuse residents currently living below the poverty line in a city of 146,000. City officials say they hope to charge a fixed rate of around $40 per month for service. The lion’s share of those costs will be supplemented by the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). To qualify for Syracuse’s looming program, city officials say residents can earn up to 200% of the federal poverty level—or roughly $29,000 for a single resident, $39,000 for a two-person household, or $60,000 for a family of four. Participating users will be given a free router and modem, which in turn will connect to city transmitters affixed to local city-owned buildings and utility poles.