Fiber to the Home Announcement is a Huge Win for Lincoln
What an incredible announcement for Lincoln!
Nelnet’s acquisition of Allo Communications and the subsequent announcement of fiber-to-the-home service in Lincoln is truly a game-changer.
Early in 2015, the Lincoln Chamber and the Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development embarked on a process that looked to capitalize on the recent successes of our community and the continued national attention Lincoln is receiving for its economic growth. We wanted to ask the question: “What’s next for Lincoln?”
As part of the process, we reached out to Angelos Angelou and asked his economic development consulting team to return to Lincoln and conduct another analysis of the community. It was Angelou and his team who visited Lincoln in the early 2000’s and laid out many of the ideas that became pillars of the 2015 Vision Group.
Along the way, the Angelou team received unprecedented cooperation and response. More than 400 businesses and 2,000 individuals weighed in through individual interviews, focus groups, and an on-line survey with their thoughts on what we should undertake as the next big thing in our community.
Overwhelmingly, the results of Angelou’s work showed people were hungry for technology and more than anything, they wanted Lincoln to be seen as a 21st century – wired community.
Last month’s announcement of 1-gig fiber to the home service takes the first step in reaching that goal. I can’t thank the pioneers at Nelnet enough for their foresight and community commitment. I also want to thank all those in City government who made this possible, including Mayor Beutler and members of Lincoln’s City Council.
A 1-gigabit service connection to any business or resident that wants it, allows companies to transmit data at some of the highest levels available today. Entrepreneurs will be able to work from home without limits to what they can achieve, students and faculty will be more connected to the global learning community, and our city now joins an elite peer group offering fiber to every home.
Even more impressive though is the national public perception that comes with being a 1-gig community. Fiber to the home is a status symbol and we will now be on the global radar for anyone looking to start or expand a business. Simply put, it is an important status symbol that should be an awesome recruiting tool for our future workforce.
You’ve heard me say it before and it rings true more so today – There is no better time to be in Lincoln.
I want to say thank you again to all those who are taking a risk and making this possible for Lincoln. The Chamber is ready to do everything we can to build on this success.
by Wendy Birdsall, President
402-436-2350 | LCOC.com
The Chamber’s mission is to improve the lives of Lincoln residents by providing increased economic opportunity and can only be accomplished together. For more information, please contact Jaime Henning at jaimehenning@lcoc.com.