Project Overview

The City of Wray believes that affordable high-speed broadband services are essential to support the needs of our residents, businesses and anchor organizations throughout the community. With the lack of investment being made into broadband and fiber infrastructure by private companies, and the increase in online applications that require more bandwidth than the current broadband infrastructure supports, the City felt that local efforts had to be made in order to mitigate future impacts economically to business and industry. It was determined that the most advantageous approach towards solving the lack of services was to pursue a public-private partnership arrangement.

The public-private partnership equips the community with a public owned high-capacity middle mile fiber backbone that runs throughout the major thoroughfares within the City with distribution points at key locations to enable broadband providers and/or partners to use the backbone network as a “jumping off point” to build their network to the business and residential customers within the identified service area.  

The middle mile fiber backbone will remain publicly owned and controlled by the City of Wray. Our partner, Plains Communications Services, LLC  will serve as the network operator, delivering retail services to businesses and residents. They will operate and manage the  infrastructure and support the public organizations connected to the infrastructure through their customer service representative. Make sure to stop by the Plains Communications Services, LLC office on Main Street 423 Main Street, Suite A, Wray, CO 80758. 

project timeline

  • 2014: City of Wray electorates voted to opt out of SB 152 which removed any statutory barriers for the City of Wray to  pursue any and all legal strategies to provide broadband services, directly or indirectly. 
  • 2015: City of Wray in partnership with Yuma County and the City of Yuma collaboratively developed the Yuma County Broadband Master Plan
  • 2016: City of Wray began process of securing a private partner that could contribute design and engineering expertise to interconnect a redundant middle mile back bone and also build last mile fiber off of the backbone to connect residents, businesses, and anchor institutions.
  • 2017: Wray City Council received partnership proposals from qualified telecommunications providers.Upon reviewing proposals, the City identified Plains Communications Services, LLC as the most advantageous partner.
  • 2018: Build out of Fiber to the Premise Infrastructure and begin servicing business and residential customers in the last quarter of 2018. 
  • 2019 and Future Goals: Telemedicine