The City of Grande Prairie approved a Fibre Optics Rebate Program that will see any fees the city charges for fibre optic projects eligible for a rebate of up to 100 per cent.
Thanks to the approval, fibre projects that started between July 1st of this year until December 31st will be eligible for the rebate.
Deputy Mayor Mike O’Connor explains the motion was passed from his colleagues’ desire to develop the city’s internet service further, with the hope that this will attract businesses, and support those that already operate in problem areas.
“We’ve heard when we’ve done our city walkabout and talked to businesses, they are very concerned about some of the spotty connection that they’re getting,” he says. “If you’re wanting to attract large business to come here, and just support our businesses here, you need to have reliable internet, and you’ve gotta have that fibre to be able to provide a good product, and good service in the community.”
O’Connor says after a Request for Information and study, nine respondents indicated they were interested in developing fibre connections in Grande Prairie, and now, the city is counting on one of them to make the investment.
“Remember, our city boundary goes out to the Hughes Lake area, so we need to make sure that any new businesses that are coming in to build, we need to be able to say- hey, we’ve got the infrastructure and you need to move here,” he says. “I think we had nine submissions sent to us and we’re evaluating that now, and hopefully we can have somebody put the investment in so that we can have better access to the internet, it’s simple.”
A number of strategic areas have been identified as the frontrunners for any fibre developments, with the greatest need being in Richmond Industrial Park, and in the Northern part of the city.
