Building Broadband: California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) grants enable broadband for 2M residents; Ezee Fiber begins installing fiber in Illinois locations

California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) grants to enable broadband for 2 million residents
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) recently approved four grants totaling up to $21 million from the state’s Last Mile Federal Funding Account (FFA) to expand broadband access in Contra Costa, Inyo, and Monterey counties. California has invested in Last Mile FFA projects serving communities in each of California’s 58 counties. The projects will be built by the California Broadband Alliance, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority, and Stimulus Technologies, and bring new broadband infrastructure to rural, suburban, and underserved communities. These four grants will expand high-speed broadband access to 1,752 locations that currently lack reliable service, benefitting about 64,000 residents, including households, small businesses, and community institutions. 

Ezee Fiber begins installing fiber for Illinois residents
Ezee Fiber has connected its first customers in Illinois, marking the launch of its Midwest operations and its continued investment in delivering symmetrical fiber internet across Chicagoland. Installations are now underway in Oak Brook and Streamwood. Residents can expect construction activity to move efficiently through neighborhoods. Ezee Fiber will provide advance notice ahead of construction and will complete all restoration that follows local municipal requirements and industry best practices.

Gateway Fiber opens O’Fallon, MO office
O’Fallon Mayor Bill Hennessey and members of the O’Fallon Chamber of Commerce recently joined the Gateway Fiber team for the ribbon-cutting to officially open the company’s headquarters on January 22, 2026. Gateway Fiber cut the ribbon to celebrate the official opening of its new O’Fallon office at 2342 Technology Dr., O’Fallon, MO 63368, joined by city officials, chamber representatives, community partners, and members of the company’s Missouri team. The event, organized in collaboration with the O'Fallon Chamber of Commerce, featured a brief program, photos, and an open house for attendees. For Gateway Fiber, the new O’Fallon office also serves as a hub for continued regional growth.

GoNetspeed’s Manchester, CT fiber build is underway
GoNetspeed is investing more than $1.6 million to expand its fiber network in Manchester. Construction is already underway, and once complete, the expansion will bring multi-gigabit speeds to more than 5,000 additional homes and businesses. This latest investment increases GoNetspeed’s total commitment to Manchester to $8.2 million. As construction continues, GoNetspeed expects to begin connecting customers in the expanded service areas in the coming weeks. GoNetspeed’s planned expansion in Manchester adds to the company’s growing momentum in building out Connecticut’s fiber-optic network, including its recent $7 million buildout in Stratford. With this buildout, more Manchester residents will join those in Ansonia, Bridgeport, Danbury, East Haven, New Haven, Hartford, and more than 40 other communities that already have access to GoNetspeed’s service—along with many additional areas that are well on their way to receiving GoNetspeed’s fiber internet.

ImOn Communications completes Mount Pleasant, IA fiber build
Mount Pleasant, Iowa, is now a fully-fiber-powered community following the completion of ImOn’s fiber Internet network. The completed network delivers fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and fiber-to-the-business (FTTB) Internet service to more than 3,500 addresses in town, providing speeds up to 1 Gbps for homes and 10 Gbps for businesses. ImOn expanded its growing fiber network to Southeast Iowa early last year, working closely with the Mount Pleasant community throughout the project. Construction began in Mount Pleasant in May 2025, and the first customer was connected in July. Construction wrapped up in late December, with a brief pause in September for the annual Midwest Old Threshers Reunion. Though construction is complete, future pocket builds—smaller construction projects that deliver service to new developments—are possible. ImOn Communications also provides fiber Internet services to Fort Madison, Keokuk, Burlington, West Burlington, and Danville. Besides Southeast Iowa, ImOn Communications’ network also serves the Cedar Rapids metro, Iowa City metro, Dubuque metro, Sioux City metro (Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota), Marshalltown, and Clinton.

Spectrum Expands fiber broadband services in Hardin County, Ohio
Spectrum has begun expanding its fiber broadband network to bring Spectrum Internet, Mobile, TV, and Voice services to more than 3,250 additional homes and businesses in previously unserved or underserved areas of Hardin County, Ohio, including locations near Ada, Alger, Dola, Dunkirk, Forest, Kenton, and Mt. Victory. Our multi-year rural construction initiative is driven by more than $7 billion in private investment from Spectrum. 

Surf Internet secures additional network investment from Macquarie Capital
Surf Internet recently announced an investment led by Macquarie Capital, alongside Bain Capital and Future Standard, marking the next stage of its fiber buildout as the company advances construction activity and prepares additional markets for launch. In February 2025, Surf announced a $175 million equity investment to accelerate fiber deployment and expand access to reliable, high-speed internet in underserved and rural communities. With the support of Macquarie Capital and existing investors, Surf is on track to surpass 330,000 total passings in 2026, bringing fiber internet service to dozens of new communities.

Zentro strengthens go-to-market with Calix’s SmartMDU platform
Zentro—a managed service provider (MSP) specializing in multi-dwelling units (MDUs)—is accelerating deployments across major urban markets with Calix’s SmartMDU, a solution on the Calix Broadband Platform. SmartMDU enables property-wide managed Wi-Fi for multifamily communities, helping Zentro personalize the resident experience and increase efficiency for property managers. Zentro provided input throughout the conception and development of SmartMDU and was an early adopter of the solution. Since then, the MSP has streamlined deployments, reduced property issue resolution time by 30 percent, and lowered operating expenses.