California Connectivity Stories: City of Ukiah

Utility poles in Ukiah, California, have been holding up City-owned electric lines since the early 1900's. This winter, crews began stringing fiber optic cables on those same poles. Ukiah is a regional hub for people living in a large and sparsely developed part of Northern California. Located two hours north of San Francisco along Highway 101, you'd expect nearly everyone to be online. Instead, hundreds of residents are unserved and many more can't get affordable high-performing internet — the kind that lets you work, run a business, see a doctor, and help your kid with homework. The City decided to fix the situation itself. Drawing on decades of experience running its own electric system, and backed by cross-sector partnerships, Ukiah is building a high-speed network that fits the community on its own utility poles.