[1st-mile-nm] Southwest Colorado Access Network

[Richard Lowenberg]

Regional Internet project nearly done: Network should be live by 
January

http://durangoherald.com/article/20130830/NEWS01/130839957/0/s/Regional-Internet-project-nearly-done

By Chuck Slothower
Durango Herald Staff Writer
Friday, August 30, 2013

A 3-year-old project to enhance Internet connectivity throughout 
Southwest Colorado is nearly complete, officials said Friday.

The Southwest Colorado Access Network links government buildings in 
Durango, Pagosa Springs, Cortez, Silverton, Dolores and Dove Creek with 
high-speed Internet. Hospitals, schools and other entities have jumped 
aboard. And private Internet service providers have added wireless 
towers to the government-funded infrastructure to reach even more users.

The project is in various stages of completion throughout the region. 
Rick Smith, general manager of SCAN and mayor of Bayfield, said the 
physical infrastructure should be in place by November, and the network 
should be live by January.

“It’s expanding connectivity throughout the region,” Smith said.

SCAN was funded by a $3 million grant from the Colorado Department of 
Local Affairs and $1 million in matching funds from local governments.

The Department of Local Affairs is looking at SCAN as a model for 
expanding Internet access to rural areas of the state.

“The department, I would say, took a leap of faith with this project, 
and you guys have responded well,” said Ken Charles, regional manager 
for the Department of Local Affairs.

Reeves Brown, the department’s Denver-based executive director, said he 
was impressed by the project’s apparent success. Brown was in Durango on 
Friday to meet with the Board of County Commissioners and city 
officials.

“More than connecting buildings, you’ve connected people, you’ve 
connected institutions,” Brown said.

The project laid broadband Internet around the region, but some remote 
areas, including Silverton, will rely on wireless connections.

Internet service providers have piggybacked off the project. For 
example, SkyWerx of Pagosa Springs built a 100-foot tower on Reservoir 
Hill to reach more residents, said Jeffrey Gavlinski, SkyWerx director 
of sales and marketing.

The available public infrastructure allows Internet service providers 
to put their money into improving their services instead of installing 
fiber, said John Monday, director of network engineering and operations 
for Durango’s FastTrack Communications.

“The ability to expand our network, expand our bandwidth – our 
resources are going to be redirected toward that,” Monday said.

Broadband Internet is as important now as paved roads were in an 
earlier era, said Brown. “I view broadband as the asphalt of this 
century.”

(snip)



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Richard Lowenberg, Executive Dir.
1st-Mile Institute, 505-603-5200
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
www.1st-mile.org  rl at 1st-mile.org
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