(Spirit Lake)– The Dickinson county board of supervisors and representatives of lakes area cities heard Tuesday the ins and outs of establishing a municipal-type telecommunications utility in the Iowa Great Lakes area.
Curtis Dean, Marketing Director for Spencer Municipal Utilities, says there are several pros and cons that need to be carefully considered. Among the advantages, he says is that cities are allowed to make their own decisions on services and how they’re priced. Disadvantages, Dean says, is the high start-up costs and he says anyone starting one up can expect staunch opposition from already existing service providers that don’t want competition.
And when it comes to establishing a municipal utility, Dean says there’s no cookie cutter-approach. He says what may work in one community, may not work in another.
Dean also warned local officials time to get new municipal utilities started in Iowa could be very limited. Mediacom has introduced a bill in the Iowa Legislature that would make it nearly impossible for municipalities to start up their own utilities.
