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BellSouth litigation is block city-owned wireless initiative in Lafayette, La.

CROSSPOSTED FROM: BroadbandReports.com:

"Though city residents voted to approve the construction of a fiber to the home system in Lafayette, Louisiana, BellSouth has thrown up legal obstacles at every turn. According to the Daily Advertiser, an appeals court has sided with BellSouth on one such attempt, and the city now cannot issue bonds to build the fiber-to-the-home project. The city has spent $125,000 fighting BellSouth lawsuits; BellSouth has spent considerably more on misleading push polls, legal costs, and local PR."

Municipal wireless ballot initiative wins in Louisiana

VOTERS SAY 'YES' TO FIBER in Lafayette, La.

Lafayette voters turned out in surprising numbers Saturday for an election with a single issue. With a 27 percent turnout, they voted 12,290 to 7,507, or 62 percent to 38 percent, to proceed with the controversial fiber-to-the-home project. The vote authorizes Lafayette Utilities System to sell up to $125 million in bonds for a fiber to the home and business project. It will involve extending fiber optics cable down every city street, then offering residents and businesses the option of receiving high-speed Internet, telephone and/or cable TV service through LUS. City officials said they believe it can offer those services at lower prices than incumbents such as BellSouth and Cox Communications. The next step for LUS is to work with the Louisiana Public Service Commission on its rule making, a move that can affect how much LUS can charge and could prevent LUS from guaranteeing the fiber bonds with revenue from its electric, sewer and water divisions. The matter may be taken up at a PSC meeting this week, said Terry Huval, LUS director. Once LUS clears the PSC rulemaking, it will begin the process to issue bonds. Without delays, Huval said, LUS could have the bond money in hand in four to five months. Then the utility would hire an engineering firm to prepare engineering on every pole and lot in the city.

[SOURCE: The Daily Advertiser, AUTHOR: Claire Taylor
ctaylor@theadvertiser.com] http://www.acadiananow.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050717/NEWS01/507170362/1002 * La. Parish Gets Broadband OK http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA626410.html?display=Breaking+News