CFU to Extend Broadband Service to Rural Area

Cedar Falls Utilities will extend high-speed fiber optic broadband services to 1000 new customers in rural Cedar Falls and surrounding areas. 

CFU recently received a $2.3 million Empower Rural Iowa Broadband Grant that will cover a portion of the construction costs to extend fiber optic service to areas outside the city limits. The grant funds make the project possible by reducing the high per-customer cost of building a rural system.

“We know fast and reliable internet service is vital for families and businesses today” said Steve Bernard CFU General Manager. 

“We’re pleased to be able to extend service to a new group of customers who currently have limited internet options. We will offer them broadband speeds that rank among the fastest in the world.”

A map of the broadband extension area is available at cfu.net/ruralbb. 

All CFU fiber internet and TV services will be available to customers in the rural project area. Landline phone service will also be available to some new customers. 

CFU offers world-class internet reliability and speeds with internet tiers that start at 250 megabits per second and stretch up to 10 gigabits per second. 

Project construction will begin this year. Contractors will work in 2022 and 2023 to install backbone conduit stretching over 90 square miles. After the conduit is in place CFU staff will install fiber optic cables and other network equipment. 

Customer installations and service activations are expected to begin in the second half of 2023. Customer activation will be a multi-year project. 

Customers in the broadband extension project area who currently receive CFU wireless WaveNet internet will be upgraded to fiber optic service. 

CFU will contact customers in the new rural service territory later this spring with a project timeline and information about signing up for service. Customers who want to learn more now may contact CFU at 319-268-5283.