The city of Westfield, Mass., has realized over $88 million annually in job-related benefits from the deployment of fiber optic broadband, according to The Fiber Broadband Association.
Westfield Gas & Electric (WG&E), the owner and operator of Westfield’s fiber network, started investing in fiber to implement a SCADA network to automate utility services.
It launched Whip City Fiber in 2015. It received permission from the Westfield City Council in 2017 to petition for a $15 million bond to fund the rollout of fiber infrastructure to cover 70 percent of the city. The service provider became a network project manager to 20 municipalities in the Western Berkshire Mountains region.
“Today our fiber network has generated over 4,600 work-from-home jobs for a city of 41,000 people, provided high-speed broadband to the public school system, increased home values, and brought new businesses and economic development into the city,” said John Leary, Information Technology Manager at Westfield Gas & Electric.
Whip City Fiber has over 152 miles of network and delivers 1 Gbps broadband speeds. Several local businesses lease dark fiber from Whip City for their operations, including medical facilities, a regional bank, and a local manufacturing firm with multiple sites in the area, the report said.
The broadband service provider generates $2-$4 million a year in revenue and invests in expanding the network for delivering broadband to more residents. Whip City Fiber expects to deliver broadband internet service to all of Westfield and expand speeds to 10 Gbps by 2025.
“WG&E and Whip City Fiber have created jobs and value to the region through the deployment of its fiber infrastructure. They have acted as a leader on how to deploy high-speed broadband, illustrating how communities and utilities benefit from fiber,” said Deborah Kish, Vice President, Research and Workforce Development at the Fiber Broadband Association.
