First, supervisors allocated $500,000 in grant funding to Cruzio Internet with the agreement the company would expand broadband access to underserved populations across the county — an effort that will expand Cruzio's existing Equal Access Santa Cruz County project. Equal Access is a collaboration between Cruzio and the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County that has provided fast Internet to families who need it for a maximum of $15 a month, its website explains.
Then, the board voted to combine the Public Works and Planning Departments with the intent to offer better, more streamlined services to residents. Together, the two divisions will form the Community Development and Infrastructure Department.
BRIDGING THE DIVIDE
When COVID-19 hit, it became evident that a digital divide existed — a divide between households with a reliable Internet connection and households without. The disparity was widespread and affected what opportunities residents had to keep learning, living and working beginning in March 2020. The nefarious circumstance has been reduced by actions such as Equal Access Santa Cruz County at the local level and Gov. Gavin Newsom's assignment of $6 million toward improving public broadband access in 2021 at the state level. These are record-breaking financial commitments.
Though progress has been made, newly minted Information Services Department Director Tony Batalla said in a report to the board Tuesday that there are still numerous small areas in unincorporated Santa Cruz County without sufficient Internet access. With $500,000 from the county's American Rescue Plan Act funding and a 150% match from Cruzio, 4,000 new households will gain high-speed access for no cost or a low cost, the county said in a release issued just after the vote.
In the first rollout, more than 700 students and families in need across the county were connected to reliable Internet through 13 service sites. Cruzio maintained the momentum through a merger with San Mateo County Internet provider Coastside.Net, a move announced in mid-January.
"Both companies stood up during fire season, helping mountain lookouts stay connected ... We live where we work. We are there for our communities," the providers said in a joint statement.
All supervisors but Greg Caput, the 4th district's representative, offered unwavering support of the program expansion. Caput commented that he felt the expansion of Equal Access as outlined by staff to be too much too fast; the supervisor also didn't feel as though there was enough investigation into information supplied by providers such as Cruzio.
Caput's district, which includes the location of schools in the Pajaro Valley Unified School District, benefitted from Cruzio's initial rollout of Equal Access. In fact, the school district was one of the project's partners.
"Santa Cruz County — while a place where many people thrive — has been a place of persistent gaps in educational opportunity," Cruzio writes on its Equal Access homepage, citing a report from the Central Coast Broadband Consortium. "As the state data shows, below average infrastructure impacts low-income families and people of color the most."
Cruzio will build 20 Points-of-Presence, or service sites that connect technology at individual homes to the Cruzio network. The sites include rooftop mounting, antennas and electronic cabinets. The sites have not yet been selected but could include a range of Housing Authority, Live Oak School District, PVUSD properties as well as the properties of other participating agencies. At least two sites will be built in Supervisor Bruce McPherson's 5th district, or the San Lorenzo Valley. Once sites are identified and evaluated and property owners sign a contract with Cruzio, the construction of the Points-of-Presence will only take a few weeks, said Cruzio Director James Hackett.
COURAGEOUS CHANGE
As he presented a longtime theory turned reality, Deputy County Administrative Officer Matt Machado thanked his colleagues for being willing to embrace a new format — a combined Public Works and Planning departments structure set to change the dynamic of the Ocean Street office's fourth floor.
For 50 years, the departments have worked side by side and found it convenient to be in the same area — even finding opportunities to work together on community development projects. By April, they will work together to staff the main feature of the Community Development and Infrastructure Department: the Unified Permit Center.
Machado said that the permit center will be the primary benefit of the forthcoming integration. It will allow a single location for applications and design teams to visit for local requirements, a process that is expected to clear up any confusion.
"The timing of the integration will allow several important long-range planning initiatives to inform the development of the new department. These include, but are not limited to, the upcoming Sustainability Update of the General Plan, Housing Element update, the Climate Action Adaptation Strategy, and the Landfill Closure Plan," Machado wrote to the board.
After unanimous approval from the board, McPherson called the initiative terrific and said he felt that it was a long time coming.
"I think the public will appreciate our effort to streamline the permitting process as much as they have with CZU Fire Recovery Permit Center," he said.
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