HomeMy WebLinkAbout2.c. Frontier WirelessAGENDA ITEM: Frontier Wireless
AGENDA SECTION:
Discussion
PREPARED BY: Jamie Verbrugge, City Administrator
AGENDA NO. 2.C.
ATTACHMENTS: None
APPROVED BY: i
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Council discussion and guidance to staff
4 ROSEMOUNT
City Council Work Session: November 15, 2006
SUMMARY
CITY COUNCIL
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Frontier Communications wants permission to install wireless transmitters and supporting equipment on
facilities owned by the City to provide wireless Internet service to its customers in Rosemount.
BACKGROUND
Early this fall, City staff contacted Frontier regarding reports that it is expanding wired, high -speed
Internet service to some communities in Dakota County. The company has committed to installing more
underground fiber optic cables in communities that include Burnsville, Apple Valley, and parts of
Lakeville The new fiber installation may permit higher data speeds than currently provided by the
company's DSL service and by competing vendors. Staff asked Frontier whether Rosemount is included
in its plans
At a meeting on September 26, local representatives of Fronner told staff that the company may include
Rosemount in future plans for fiber expansion, depending on corporate budget considerations. The
representatives also raised the possibility that installation of additional fiber in Rosemount would be
hastened if the City cooperates with the company's plans for a wireless Internet service. To build the
system, Frontier would require the use of City property for the installation of a series of access points,
spaced around the community so that each would serve an area of approximately 1,000 feet in radius.
Staff took part in a telephone conference call with a Frontier executive on November 2 to discuss aspects
of the company's proposal that it had previously provided in wnting. The company indicated that it would
provide a revised written proposal based on agreements it reached this month with clues m other states.
That revised proposal was forwarded on the evening of November 5.
OVERVIEW OF PROPOSED SERVICE
Descriptions of the proposal in this memorandum are summaries created by staff based on discussions
with and printed materials provided by Frontier at the tune of writing. Frontier has not reviewed this
summary.
Frontier says it would offer a wireless Internet, or "WiFi," option in its service area in Rosemount
Company representatives say the system would be designed to provide typical outdoor speeds of 1 megabit
per second between its access points and a customer's computer. (The November 5 proposal mdicates a
minimum speed of roughly a quarter of a megabit.) Like cellular telephone technology, Frontier's WiFi
would permit a user m most cases to stay connected even when moving between areas of Rosemount
served by different access points. Unlike cellular technology, the service would be more sensitive to
hornets between the customer and the access point: a user inside a building might have difficulty making a
connection or obtaining high speeds The Frontier proposal commits to providing service using wireless
protocols in common use today (802.11b and 802.11g) but does not commit to upgrading to faster
protocols that may be adopted by the industry during the term of the agreement.
Frontier envisions its system as an add -on service for its customers who subscnbe to its DSL service and
as a selling point to gam additional customers for its existing service This is a distinction from the two
systems in the Twin Cities area that have received the most news coverage• the system built by the City of
Chaska through its municipal electrical utility, and the system being built by a private company with the
help of the City of Mmneapohs. Those systems were promoted as a way to provide service to residents
and the city governments in place of wired technologies from existing providers, and at a lower cost than
previously available to customers. Frontier says it does not generally plan to offer its WiFi service as a
standalone option, except as a choice for visitors to the community with a "day pass" arrangement. The
company says its Rosemount customers would be able to "roam" and use the same service in nearby
communities also served by Frontier WiFi.
Frontier says pricing details are propnetary until the service begins; it says only that it will charge fees that
it considers competitive.
Frontier's preferred equipment is 14 inches wide and draws 18 watts of electricity. The company has
provided some photographs of typical installations. (In the photo on the left, the device is attached below
the arm holding the streetlight)
2
FRONTIER'S PROPOSED ARRANGEMENT WITH THE CITY
Frontier says its proposal is superior for City government compared with some arrangements because it
does not require the City to help fund construction of the system Frontier would cover all costs of
engineering, operation, and marketing. In exchange, the company wants a ten -year agreement with
Rosemount givmg it free use of City facilities that might be suitable for its access points Installation
would typically occur on structures 15 to 40 feet above ground. City buildings, water towers, light poles,
and traffic signals are among the possible sites for the equipment Frontier would use right -of -way
agreements to run wired connections to the access points, and would pay the cost of installation and the
ongoing cost of power needed to operate the system. To determine the best locations for the installations,
Frontier's engineers or consultants would need the help of City staff to access City facilities.
Frontier acknowledges that other companies may wish to compete with it to provide WiFi service in
Rosemount. The proposal indicates, "In consideration thereof, the Municipality agrees that if any wireless
provider wants to use any Municipal owned facilities for the purpose of proving a wireless network, a
deployment and facilities agreement will be executed prior to any such network development."
While Frontier does not ask for an exclusive arrangement for use of City facilities, it indicates that in some
cases it would object to the positioning of equipment on those facilities by a competing provider because
of the risk of interference to the radio signals used to carry data The company wants the City's
commitment that it will not introduce any uses of City property by another party or the City itself that
would have "a matenal negative impact" on Frontier's service. The company also wants the right of first
refusal to purchase any property the City wants to abandon if it holds an access point, with six months'
notice Frontier reserves the right to terminate the agreement if City facilities become unsuitable for the
system for various reasons, including government regulations or changes in the WiFi system design.
CITY GOVERNMENT USE OF THE SYSTEM
Frontier says its WiFi service would offer a number of new options for increased efficiency and lower
costs for City government in providing services to the public. The company says it would be able in some
cases to create software "solutions" for City needs, and m other cases would be able to facilitate City
arrangements with other vendors.
In discussions of potential City services that would benefit from its WiFi service, Frontier focuses on
functions that must be conducted in the field. Examples include allowing police officers to access crime
databases from their cars, and allowing fire crews to access hazardous materials and building permit data
while on calls. Under public works, the company envisions uses to allow remote monitoring of water
facilities and utility customer usage. Building inspectors could have rapid access to relevant records for
their responsibilities.
The City currently uses some other solutions to convey data to personnel away from the office. Police
cars get data over wireless modems through a cellular telephone service. Much of the water utility is
monitored by radio through a SCADA system. There is not enough information in the current proposal
to permit cost and reliability comparisons between the existing services employed by the City and the
Frontier system. Some systems the City is using, such as the recent addition of the CarteGraph solution to
monitoring public works operations, apparently could be accessed over an Internet connection as
envisioned m the Frontier system. Frontier also says its proposed \ViFi system could serve as a backup to
existing communications routes for City government. But there may be coverage limitations that would
affect \XTiFi's availability (such as serving pohce vehicles in the rural part of the City).
3
APPROVAL TIMING
Frontier has told City staff that it has a set amount of internal funding available to approve a hmited
number of community, WiFi systems dunng the last quarter of this year and the first quarter of next year.
It is asking for an approval from the Rosemount City Council as soon as possible, at best before this
month is out. The company's representatives say they are talking with other communities within and
outside Minnesota, and that funding may be exhausted. The representatives say that once the funding is
gone, the company will not commit to full build outs of WiFi in a given timeframe, and in some cases may
provide only partial build outs of service or decline to provide the service m the foreseeable future.
On November 6, Frontier won approval from the Burnsville City Council to install a system in that city.
As of this wnttng, the Burnsville contract has not been signed, and Frontier has told Rosemount City staff
it considers the contents proprietary.
SUMMARY
Staff is looking for Council direction on whether to proceed at this time with an agreement with Frontier.
4