Salisbury City Council has the cart before the horse with the public hearing it will hold today on leasing Fibrant to Hotwire Communications. The terms of the lease have yet to be revealed to the public. But citizens can knowingly express their opinion today on one aspect: In concept, the lease is the most constructive move the city has made regarding Fibrant since the broadband system went live in 2010.

For that reason, citizens should encourage City Council to press forward with the leasing process and reveal the final terms as soon as possible. Voters will have the final say through a May 8 referendum.

The council committed the city to Fibrant before the Great Recession decimated the economy in 2009. At the time, prospects looked bright. The city of Wilson already had a successful fiber optic network. Drawing on a consultant’s projections, Salisbury leaders envisioned a profitable system that would boost the city’s reputation and finances.

Fibrant did not pan out that way for a variety of reasons, one being that the city did not know how to market TV, phone and internet services. It’s a highly competitive business, and the city was a small David taking on seasoned Goliaths, without a slingshot in sight.

On top of that, the General Assembly enacted a law barring municipal broadband systems from extending services beyond their city limits.

Fibrant has enthusiastic customers, but it needs more of them. What other city can claim broadband speeds of 1 gigabit-per-second citywide and the ability to go to 10 gigs? Nevertheless, Fibrant has not gained the market share on which its sunny financial projections were based. Instead of making money for the city, the system has needed about $3 million a year from city coffers. Meanwhile, the city owes some $30 million in principal and interest on bonds that built the system. 

The lease could substantially change that picture — both in the number of customers attracted and impact on the city budget. It would put the high-speed system in the hands of a company with marketing expertise. The city would receive revenue while Hotwire took over responsibility for maintenance and capital improvement. Thanks to economies of scale, Hotwire could succeed where Salisbury has struggled.

The timing of today’s hearing is about getting a public referendum on the May 8 ballot, according to City Manager Lane Bailey. Certain criteria have to be met, and holding a hearing is one of them.

Many questions remain to be answered. What happens to the city’s Fibrant employees? How will Hotwire handle outages and customer service? How much revenue can the city expect and are those projections realistic? Voters will need that information before May 8.

None of today’s City Council members were in office when Fibrant was created; nor was the city manager. But they have responsibility for Fibrant now. Fortunately, they’re determined to turn this situation around. Citizens should support that initiative and pay attention as more details emerge.