William P. Sapelli Tel: 413-786-4520
Mayor Fax: 413-786-9927
For Immediate Release
Mayor William P. Sapelli announced the formation of a Municipal Fiber Task Force to study the internet (broadband) network throughout the Town of Agawam. All options will be explored, including a Town owned and managed network or partnering with a third party to establish a new network. The costs associated with any changes and potential impacts to the consumers will be a primary consideration. Comcast recently announced that subscribers who exceed a data limit will be charged additional fees for the overages beginning this year in late summer.
Mayor Sapelli commented “Comcast’s announcement has created a tremendous amount of anxiety in Town and people are rightfully concerned with exceeding the monthly cap and facing higher internet bills.” The task force will review that issue and look into the steps needed for the Town to partner with a third party or independently establish a new internet network that the Town would own and operate.
Internet service is a crucial utility for the operation of businesses, for those working remotely and for all the families that rely on the service for remote learning. The task force will look to include an alternative service to the current cable offering that will be more reliable and faster while being realistic on the cost. Mayor Sapelli added “A modern high speed internet service offered at a reasonable cost will serve as another major policy initiative to keep Agawam a great place to reside or operate a business. Two major concerns are: is it affordable, and; is this the best model for our residents and businesses.”
The Municipal Fiber Task Force will be comprised of 7 individuals, Agawam residents Paul Jenney and Brian Burbank, West of the River Chamber of Commerce, Executive Director Robin Wozniak, City Councilor Rosemary Sandlin, the Town’s IT Director Jeff Hulbert, Cable TV Manager Les Tingley, and the Director of Planning and Community Development Marc Strange. The goal is for the group to report back to the Mayor’s Office in late spring.
William P. Sapelli, Mayor