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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

The Urbana-Champaign Big Broadband project plans to construct 187 miles of fiber-optic broadband network to provide high-speed connectivity to area community anchor institutions and support fiber-to-the-home services in four low-income neighborhoods. Known as a leader in computer networking technology, the University of Illinois plans to bring its experience to bear as it works to close the digital divide in Urbana-Champaign. The project will directly connect 143 anchor institutions, including 40 K-12 schools, 17 social service agencies, 14 healthcare facilities, nine youth centers, four public library systems, and two higher education institutions. A majority of these institutions expect to receive much faster Internet connectivity via this project. The project proposes to create a fiber-to-the-home pilot project for 2,500 low-income households to purchase affordable high-speed Internet service. In addition, the project expects to spur affordable broadband Internet access for local consumers, including up to 50,000 households and 3,700 businesses, by enabling local Internet service providers to connect to the project’s open network. The Urbana-Champaign Big Broadband project also proposes to: - Provide intranet speeds of at least 100 Mbps. - Work with education, healthcare, public safety, public service and government service organizations to improve access to services and a range of applications for area residents and businesses.

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