Closing the Digital Divide for Low-Income and Special-Needs Residents: Main Street Connect<\/h1><\/div>

As Published in Broadband Communities Magazine, March\/April 2021<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Main Street Connect is a new apartment complex in Montgomery County, Maryland, that offers symmetrical 50 Mbps internet services and digital training for low-income and special-needs residents via a partnership with the county government\u2019s Department of Technology Services.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/h2><\/span>

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BroadBand Communities thanks Joseph Webster, the department\u2019s chief broadband officer in the Office of Broadband Programs; Marjorie Williams, the department\u2019s broadband, cable and franchise division manager; and Pierre Trudeau, CTO of Positron, for helping compile this profile.<\/strong><\/p>\n

When Jillian and Scott Copeland began looking for long-term housing where their son, Nicolas, who has developmental disabilities, could thrive, they found very few options. Hoping to help other families facing a similar challenge, the Copelands founded Main Street Connect in 2017. Their mission: to create affordable, inclusive housing that others residents of all abilities dynamic opportunities and community engagement.<\/p>\n

The Rockville, Maryland, apartment complex opened in August 2020. Today, 25 percent of the building\u2019s 70 units are allocated for adults with disabilities, and the remaining 75 percent other affordable housing options for all.<\/p>\n

The Montgomery County Department of Technology Services provides symmetrical speeds of 50 Mbps and internet bandwidth to support Wi-Fi service in all public areas in the building via its internet service network, MoCoNet. The service includes Wi-Fi coverage, online security, parental and access controls, and 24\/7 customer service.<\/p>\n

By providing MoCoNet\u2019s service at low or no cost to Main Street Connect community members, the county aims to promote digital equity. Digital equity means everyone has equal access to the technology necessary to participate in all aspects of society. For low-income households especially, access to the internet can be a burden when added to the costs of rent, child care, food and other necessary expenses.<\/p>\n

Qualifying residents of Main Street Connect apartments may choose between MoCoNet, Comcast or Verizon for internet service. MoCoNet is free for eligible residents; Comcast and Verizon charge for their services.
\n\u201cWhen we contacted the developers about providing robust internet access for residents in their units, they were very interested,\u201dsays Joseph Webster, chief broadband officer in the Office of Broadband Programs at the Montgomery County Department of Technology Services.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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County Network Tie-in<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/h2><\/span>

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The idea of establishing MoCoNet to extend affordable broadband to Main Street Connect is rooted in Montgomery County\u2019s FiberNet network.<\/p>\n

FiberNet enables the county to provide voice, data, video and Wi-Fi services to county departments, offices and agencies. The network also serves the county\u2019s 911 center and connects 220 K\u201312 public schools, the schools\u2019 data center, FiberNet\u2019s data center and several other commercial data centers. It also serves agencies not directly tied to county government, including planning, sewer control and others.<\/p>\n

The 600-route-mile fiber network enables Montgomery County to modernize communications services, including expanding broadband capacity necessary to support increased usage of wireless devices within workplaces and public spaces and the transition to IP-based public safety communication services.<\/p>\n

Having built a Cisco-based MPLS network that serves the greater Montgomery County suburban community and metro over the past 20 years, the county is in the process of upgrading to what it calls its \u201cthird- generation network.\u201d
\nAbout a year ago, Montgomery County appointed Gail Roper as chief information officer. She shares a passion for bringing internet services to more people and educating them about how to leverage internet and digital services.<\/p>\n

\u201cGail, our Department of Technology Services, and my team in the Office of Broadband Programs all have an interest in digital equity,\u201d says Webster. \u201cThe county has been doing a number of things, including providing free Wi-Fi in our 22 libraries, county buildings and senior centers.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Extending Broadband To Living Spaces<\/h2><\/span>

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Providing free Wi-Fi in public spaces is just one element of Montgomery County\u2019s desire to help people access the internet. With the advent of COVID-19, the Department of Technology Services started looking for projects to extend internet services into people\u2019s living spaces.<\/p>\n

Today, FiberNet has Fiber connected to several affordable housing developments through Montgomery County\u2019s Housing Opportunity Commission (HOC).<\/p>\n

\u201cHistorically, we have only provided Wi-Fi in common areas or meeting rooms at HOC properties. While it is better than nothing, it is not ideal,\u201dWebster says.\u201c The goal was to find a proof-of-concept project where we could extend internet directly into people\u2019s living spaces.\u201d<\/p>\n

But carrying out this mission is easier said than done. FiberNet had to wade through myriad laws that in many cases prohibit municipal broadband.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than half of states have restrictions or outright prohibitions on community broadband or municipal broadband,\u201d Webster says. \u201cFortunately, we don\u2019t have that issue in Maryland, so there are no state regulations or restrictions on a city\u2019s or locality\u2019s ability to provide internet directly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Enhancing Broadband Options<\/h2><\/span>

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In Montgomery County, residents and businesses can access broadband services from Verizon Fios and Comcast. RCN also others services in some pockets of the county.<\/p>\n

Comcast and Verizon previously installed facilities to provide internet services and video to Main Street Connect apartments. The walls were up and the building\u2019s wiring was already in place by the time Montgomery County got involved in the project in early 2020, so the Department of Technology Services could not install its own wiring, which it does in county buildings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation left us a little bit challenged because typically we would use Cat 6 wiring and provide Active Ethernet service,\u201d Webster says.<\/p>\n

\u201cFortunately, I came across Positron at BroadBand Communities\u2019 economic development conference in October 2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leveraging the coax network and the equipment from these vendors, Montgomery County developed MoCoNet, which others 50 symmetrical to all residents who want it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe criteria to get the service is very easy: it could be a special-needs apartment and\/or an affordable unit,\u201d Webster says. \u201cThere are about 10 apartments at Main Street that are market rate, which means they would not qualify, but the rest do. We\u2019re providing only internet access.\u201d<\/p>\n

Residents can choose to use MoCoNet and Verizon, but they can\u2019t use Comcast and MoCoNet because the two providers can\u2019t use the coax simultaneously.
\nPositron provides the broadband access equipment necessary for residents to connect to Montgomery County\u2019s free internet.<\/p>\n

The vendor\u2019s G.hn access multiplexer (GAM) family can deliver near-symmetrical gigabit internet access to subscribers in multiple-dwelling- unit (MDU) buildings over existing telephone or coaxial infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\u201cPositron\u2019s GAM is perfectly suited for this situation,\u201d Webster says. \u201cThe ber was installed by Verizon, and the coax was paid for and controlled by
\nthe developer, so Positron\u2019s equipment allowed us to leverage the existing coax.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two other key partners were Plume and Cisco. Plume provides its Wi-Fi software, HomePass, which is delivered through the Plume Cloud, the Plume app and SuperPods.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlume was an important partner, and Cisco provided free routing and switching equipment as part of this digital equity project,\u201d Webster says. \u201cWe had three important technology partners.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though MoCoNet is not using Plume for IoT and building management applications, such as monitoring leaks and heating, it has tapped into Plume Motion, a Wi-Fi sensing application. Plume Motion detects disturbances in Wi-Fi signals between its pods or between a pod and a motion-capable device.<\/p>\n

These disturbances in the signal are translated into Plume Motion events, which residents can use to detect activity in their homes.<\/p>\n

\u201cResidents can download the app on their phones, and if there\u2019s a human walking around in their apartments, it sends a phone notification,\u201d Webster says. \u201cFor some residents, family members who are not in the building with them could say ‘My family member is up and walking around, and I know they are OK.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Main Street Connect is the first complex where MoCoNet is piloting its symmetrical service, but it won\u2019t be the last.<\/p>\n

\u201cMain Street was our first foray into providing service inside people\u2019s living spaces,\u201d Webster says. \u201cWe refer to it as a proof of concept, where we are trialing vendors like Positron to maintain and operate it.\u201d He adds
\nthe agency is looking for other MDU opportunities in Montgomery County.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal is now to extend it to other affordable living units in the county,\u201d Webster says. \u201cMDUs make the most sense because they bring the biggest bang for the buck.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>