North Baltimore Residents Demand Expanded Internet Service

The Baltimore Broadband Coalition is launching a campaign to entice Internet service providers to install fiber optic cable in the city, expanding the options available to residents. 

The coalition is the result of several North Baltimore neighborhoods Roland Park,; Roland Springs;  Wyndhurst; Keswick; Mt. Washington; Homeland; Guilford; Hoes Heights; Cross Keys; Tuscany-Canterbury; Evergreen; and North Roland Park being frustrated by the limited service options.

The group announced it’s using CrowdFiber to solicit donations, and show that at least 20 percent of residents in the communities support the goal, according to an email distributed by the Roland Park Civic League. 

"This campaign was developed in response to a survey and community meeting that indicated residents throughout North Baltimore are dissatisfied with their current service choices.  While you can buy your electricity or your natural gas from one of many vendors, in Baltimore, residents usually have only one choice when it comes to the fastest Internet service," the email reads.

In March the group held a meeting with representatives from Comcast and Verizon to discuss the issues of limited service options.

"Well, I think the purpose of the meeting was to communicate information, raise the level of understanding of the issue and frankly gauge what’s the interest in the issue," Phil Spevak, a Roland Park resident and one of the meeting’s organizers, said at the time.