Municipal Broadband: Urban Savior Or Gentrification’s Wrecking Ball?

The case for city-operated broadband is compelling. It offers comparatively fast service. It’s celebrated as a means by which to preserve net neutrality. It also has the potential to liberate communities from ISPs’ notorious monopolistic control of regional billing inflation, and denial of service to rural and low-income communities—a phenomenon popularly termed the “digital divide.” Furthermore, municipalities often tout broadband alternatives as a means of “economic development,” an expression typically denoting the process of attracting businesses and, by theoretical extension, creating jobs. Fast, reliable internet connections, the logic goes, are appealing to companies—particularly tech startups that rely on consistent broadband access in their daily operations and seek environs cheaper than West Coast metropolises. Yet, while cities’ broadband initiatives and digital-friendly promotional campaigns project a narrative of progressive growth, the repercussions for disenfranchised communities often go overlooked. Community activists are skeptical that digital training and access alone, even if they’re purported to broaden job opportunities and address transportation and health-care issues, will suffice to improve the quality of life of the most vulnerable residents.