News -> INDReporter TUE, MAR 16 11:20AM by Nathan Stubbs

City seeking $9.2 million in stimulus grants to address digital divide

Lafayette Consolidated Government and LUS Fiber have applied for $9.2 million in federal grants to address Lafayette's digital divide. The city is seeking the funds from the U.S. Dept. of Commerce's Broadband Technology Opportunity Program. BTOP, funded by last year's American Recovery Act or "stimulus," is administering more than $4 billion in grants to support broadband deployment to under-served areas. Sen. Mary Landrieu recently announced Louisiana has been awarded $80 million to deploy more than 900 miles of fiber-optic network in rural, north Louisiana.

LCG, which is seeking funds through the second round of BTOP applications, has applied for two grants. In one, LUS Fiber proposes partnering with Je'Nelle Chargois' Heritage School of the Arts and Technology to expand on the school's Build-A-Computer Program, which provides low-income students who graduate from a computer literacy course with free computers. The grant application requests $5.3 million, which would go toward 55 direct or indirect jobs in providing 35,000 hours of computer training and 1,000 new PCs, as well as pay for two-year subscriptions to high speed Internet through LUS Fiber for graduates of the program.

The grant application notes that addressing the digital divide was one of the early goals of LUS Fiber and references a study conducted with UL Lafayette of Internet use in Lafayette that can serve as a baseline to measure the program's effectiveness. "From our standpoint," LUS Director Terry Huval says, "this is a perfect opportunity to take the community assets that we have and address the digital divide. Having learned about the work that the Heritage School of the Arts and Technology was doing, we thought it was a perfect match for what we would like to see done, which is get more Internet in the homes."

The other grant being sought by LCG is for $3.9 million and would be administerd by its Community Development department. The grant seeks to expand public computing centers in Lafayette, adding 164 new PCs for local public libraries, 12 for Lafayette's two senior citizen centers and 60 for the Lafayette Housing Authority to create computer centers within three of its housing  developments. It would also fund 43 direct or indirect jobs. "This an excellent example of what we can do by working with other partners in the community," says new Community Development Director Ben Berthelot. "It's the kind of partnership that I envision hopefully doing a lot more of in the future."

LCG submitted the two grant applications yesterday. Officials estimate it could be between six to 12 months before BTOP announces its next round of grant awards.


Comments (8)add
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written by Limited Liability , March 16, 2010 - 06:29 pm
So will Cox get this government subsidy too? Government subsidy equals boondoggle.
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written by Huh? , March 17, 2010 - 12:36 am
There was nothing to prevent Cox from applying if it wanted it to do so. There were a number of non-government telecom companies that were awarded stimulus grants the first time applications were made.
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written by TheMassesAreIgnorant , March 17, 2010 - 01:44 am
First of all, it's not a subsidy. It's a grant. If you need help with the definition of a grant, see wikipedia.

Secondly, did Cox apply for the grant? No. And why not? They are not interested in communities taking their future into their own hands and not being so dependent on their over priced services.

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written by JP , March 17, 2010 - 03:29 pm
Now, now. Limited Liability and his cohorts don't want to hear any of them dang ole "facts" and "information." That stuff tends to get in the way of partisan ideology. Who needs rational explanations when you have thought-stopping cliches?
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written by Morrow , March 18, 2010 - 09:48 am
I know I have a technological deficit disorder, but the amount of money sounds astronomical to me. Would it really take that amount of money, or are they just looking for places to spend that amount of money? The number of units sounds large to me, but my biggest gripe is that I think the libraries already collect an enormous amount of money from my property taxes. I grew up with ONE library in Lafayette, and somehow we survived, got an education in the public school system and went on to college and earned a degree. Hard work that. SO I HAVE A BIG PROBLEM GIVING THE LIBRARY ANY, REPEAT, ANY MORE MONEY - PERIOD !!! I THINK THIS IS DO ABLE, THE LIBRARY PART, WITHOUT ANY ADDTIONAL FUNDING.
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written by ragin_cajun , March 18, 2010 - 12:55 pm
Masses--Grant and subsidy are pretty much synonymous. I've found 2 different places on the web that use the word subsidy in the definition of grant, like this...http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/grant.html

JP--Does that definition from businessdictionary.com satisfy your requirement for "facts" and "information"?

I personally don't take money that I did not earn. It's a point of honor. I'd like to see my values reflected in my local government. Every nickel that LCG takes from the federal government is an unearned nickel that someone else was forced to pay by law. If people want Internet access, they should earn the money to pay for it. LCG nudging up to the national trough like some greedy piglet is embarrassing, demeaning, and contrary to the personal values of our people.
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written by TheMassesAreIgnorant , March 18, 2010 - 11:04 pm
Rajun,

Great points!!
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written by NORTHSIDIAN SHOTGUN , March 25, 2010 - 07:23 pm
I AM VERY PLEASED TO SEE THAT A NEW CROP OF INBRED COUILLIES HAVE BEEN GENERATED THIS FINE SPRING....... WHOSE YA DADDY ?
I CAN TRUTHFULLY SAY AND BET MY LAST $.10, LAFAYETTE HAS THE MARKET ON COUILLIES, WHO HAVE NOT A THING TO CONTRIBUTE OTHER THAN TO FOOLISHLY DEBATE THE MOST MEANLESS SHALLOW POINTS.....

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