The City of Biddeford is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a $15,000 grant from the Broadband Fund of the Maine Community Foundation. The grant funding will be used to create a Broadband Plan that will help Biddeford move towards becoming a “Smart Community”.
The City will mobilize a Community Broadband Team that will hire a broadband consultant to identify broadband needs in Biddeford’s low- to moderate-income neighborhoods. The consultant will create a map demonstrating existing broadband connections, gaps in service, and opportunities for expansion, and will work with staff to identify obstacles to meeting broadband needs, including issues of affordability and proprietary delivery of services. A digital literacy outreach strategy to help overcome these obstacles will be developed and implemented by the City’s Neighborhood Planning Committee.