On April 13, 2021, the Board of Supervisors directed staff to set aside $500,000 in matching grants from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) for broadband access expansion in Santa Cruz County. The RFP was awarded to Cruzio to build out wireless broadband in the County with a focus on underserved/non served residents and equitable broadband access for low income households in Santa Cruz County
The project includes 19 sites that can potentially serve 4200 residents. A map of the locations is below:
EAS2C is bringing high-speed connectivity to large areas of San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, and Monterey Counties where internet service is inadequate. Many folks in these rural and remote regions have been left behind, dealing with outdated copper networks and limited internet options that are both scarce and pricey. Cruzio came up with an economical plan to address the problem, and the State of California has approved and will fund some of the work. The project will bring high speed internet to 759 unserved locations in San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, and Monterey Counties.
In July 2021 Governor Newson signed into law SB 156 to create an open-access middle mile network to bring high-speed broadband service to all Californian. The middle mile is the physical fiber optic infrastructure needed to enable internet connectivity. It is made up of high-capacity fiber lines that carry large amounts of data at high speeds over long distances. An open-access network gives providers and entities access to broadband infrastructure that will allow any networks to connect on equal economic and service terms.
In Santa Cruz County, the middle mile includes all of Highway 9, Highway 17 and Highway 1 from North of Davenport to the Monterey County Border consisting of 66 miles. This middle mile will allow internet providers access to areas to extend connectivity to unserved and underserved areas, moving the county closer to broadband for all.
