The Ukiah City Council voted unanimously this week to move forward with a $3.3 million public-private partnership to build a city-owned fiber optic network, despite the risk that construction delays could force Ukiah to cover the entire cost.
The 23-mile project includes 17 miles of aerial installation of fiber optic cable on utility poles and six miles in underground conduit. It is expected to deliver upload and download speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second.
Ukiah received a $5 million grant from the California Public Utilities Commission last September through the agency’s last-mile grant program. Of that amount, $3 million will fund the broadband project, $1.7 million will replace aging utility poles, and the remainder will support construction management and grant administration, according to Andrea Trincado, the city’s project and grants administrator.
Vero Fiber Networks LLC, the city’s private partner, has committed $1 million in matching funds for the project, designated for installing customer drops and equipment.
Jim Robbins, the city’s housing and grants manager, warned the council Tuesday night that the rules for this program allow the CPUC to refuse to disburse funds or to seek to recover funds if the project is not completed by Oct. 28, 2026.
“It’s important for the council to understand that,” Robbins said.
“There was an effort to get the PUC to acknowledge that if it’s a true force majeure event — if it’s something that the parties can’t control and it’s not their fault — that they should allow for an extension of that deadline. And they’re saying no. They expressly said no, they weren’t doing that,” Robbins explained.
Robbins added that if the contractor failed to perform, they would bear some responsibility.
Councilmember Susan Sher asked Evan Biaghi, chief revenue officer of Vero Fiber Networks, which will design, build, operate and maintain the project for 35 years, whether he was comfortable with the timeline.
“Normally I would say I’d have a pretty good deal of hesitation,” Biaghi said. In this case, however, he noted that the timeline will be jointly controlled by the city and Vero. “We’re going to have to work together to accomplish this in that time,” he said.
Biaghi added that the company did not foresee issues obtaining materials and was committed to bringing construction teams to Ukiah. “It’s more often the permitting and licensing and things like that, that could delay a project like this,” he said.
City staff estimates Ukiah will save $55,000 a year on internet services. Vero will also pay the city an annual fee, starting at $12,000 once it has signed up 800 subscribers. After that, Vero will pay $1,500 for each additional block of 100 subscribers — or $15 per subscriber. If 5,000 of Ukiah’s 6,067 households subscribe, the city would collect an additional $84,000 a year.
The hub of the network will be at the Civic Center/Central Fire Station, with distribution to 13 other city facilities, including the airport, Civic Center Annex, Ukiah Valley Conference Center, Corporation Yard, Electric Service Center, Fire Stations North and South, Grace Hudson Museum, Low Gap Electrical Switch Yard, Customer Service Center Building (formerly the Bank of America Building), Orchard Electrical Substation, Wastewater Treatment Plant, and Water Treatment Plant.
The fiber network will consist of 288 strands. The city will lease out 240 strands and retain 48 for its own use.
While the explicit goal of the last-mile program is to close the digital divide, Biaghi said this will be accomplished by ensuring the network passes 375 households currently receiving service at speeds between 25 megabits per second download/3 Mbps upload and 100 Mbps download/25 Mbps upload.
“What does that look like?” he asked rhetorically. “It’s going down the street on those poles where those homes are. That is considered passing.”
Service plans for residential customers will start at $39.99 a month for qualifying low-income households. Tiered plans will begin at $49.99 a month for 100 Mbps, increasing to $129.95 a month for 2.3 Gbps.
“This project will expand access to remote work, online education and telehealth, and help close the digital divide,” Trincado said. “It also strengthens our economic development opportunities and positions Ukiah for Smart City initiatives.”
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