The City of Leduc is partnering with TELUS to bring PureFibre internet service to the city's downtown core over the next two years.
TELUS will fund and oversee the project, which will include engagement with business properties in the area prior to construction. A construction schedule will be released in the future but will cover the city's downtown, business parks, and Leduc Common.
Work is expected to be completed by the fall of 2022.
“As a community invested in the social and economic development of our region, the City of Leduc recognizes the importance of upgrading broadband connectivity for businesses and has explored options with private telecommunications companies to enhance connectivity to businesses in our city over the past several years," Mayor Bob Young told Taproot.
"We are confident that the partnership with TELUS to bring PureFibre internet service to our business community will have a significant positive impact on the success and viability of businesses in our city, and will also enable the broader region to benefit from better connectivity in the long term."
Young said the the city will continue to seek out partnerships and opportunities to support the quality of life for residents and members of the business community.
The announcement addresses an action in the 2019-22 Corporate Business Plan to partner with telecom companies to bring broadband to Leduc, part of a strategy to increase community building capacity to meet the needs and expectations of residents by working collaboratively.
An August 2020 regional broadband report from the Edmonton Metropolitan Regional Board said interviews indicated broadband enhancement was a high priority for Leduc. However, the report notes that Leduc did not have a dedicated broadband strategy at the time.
It estimated the city of 12,556 households would see an economic benefit of $4.4 million per year should broadband with a 25MB/s service minimum be widely implemented. TELUS advertises PureFibre as having up to 1,500 MB/s download speed and up to 940 MB/s upload speed.