MAYOR ANNOUNCES REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS TO BRING HIGH-SPEED FIBER INTERNET SERVICE TO PIONEER SQUARE REMOVES BARRIERS TO NEXT GENERATION OF FIBER BROADBAND CONNECTIVITY.

SEATTLE, WA -- The following information was released by the city of Seattle:

Mayor Mike McGinn joined former mayor Charles Royer, Department of Information Technology Director Bill Schrier and Pioneer Square business owner Jeff Strain today to announce the next step in the City's effort to bring high-speed fiber internet to Pioneer Square. The City is publishing a Request for Proposals for Internet service providers to offer fiber optic-based broadband service in Pioneer Square. This would allow businesses to get much more bandwidth than is available to them today, at speeds up to 100 times faster than is currently available.

"Businesses have told us the internet service available to them in Pioneer Square is 'barely adequate,'" said McGinn. "Today we are one step closer to bringing them the extremely fast internet service they need to compete in the global economy."

McGinn announced in his State of the City address in February that Seattle City Light and the Department of Information Technology would lay conduit under four blocks of First Avenue in Pioneer Square as part of an existing project. The conduit enables fiber optic cable to be pulled through it, allowing nearby businesses to connect to high-speed fiber broadband internet service.

"This is something we have needed and is coming at the right time, just as new economy firms are filling up Pioneer Square office space" said former mayor Charles Royer.

Under the terms of today's RFP, internet service providers will be able to pull fiber through the City's conduit and serve neighboring buildings. Fiber optic cable has much higher bandwidth than most of the existing infrastructure, and can handle both extremely high download and upload speeds. Copper and coaxial cable physically limit the amount of data-and business-that can travel over them.

"What we are able to get in Pioneer Square right now is about half the speed of what you'd be able to get in your home," said Jeff Strain, founder of Undead Labs, a game development company. "Fiber internet is essential in order for us to keep our company here."

The City expects 2 to 3 internet service providers to submit proposals. If none do, then the City will take steps to directly make service available. McGinn said the City hopes fiber broadband service will be available to customers along First Avenue by the end of September.