Internet to be included as a $15/mth fee at CityHousing’s 500 MacNab Seniors Apartments – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

October 30, 2020
Residents who moved into the renovated Ken Soble Towers at 500 MacNab Street North will pay 15 dollars per month to the City of Hamilton’s telecommunications company HCE for high speed internet as part of their rent.
HCE will be paid $28,030 by CityHousing Hamilton for internet service to the building, which will be added to monthly rent bills for tenants.
Sean Botham, a manager with CityHousing Hamilton says the charge will be treated similarly to other fees such as parking. Botham says having HCE as the telecommunications partner will save CHH approximately $200,000 on capital costs compared to installing infrastructure for Bell and Cogeco service into the building.
CityHousing Hamilton says they hope to expand this type of service to other properties in Hamilton where HCE offers service.
[The City of Hamilton used to operate a city-wide fibre optic network. Hamilton City Council sold Fibrewired Hamilton to Atria in 2008. Council did not disclose how much they received. The sale ended the City’s public outdoor wifi network, which shut down a few years later.]
Councillors on the CityHousing Hamilton Board praised the arrangement.