EPB plans to move into the cable TV business as part of a new "Fiber to the Home" initiative announced Friday.

The EPB board of directors unanimously approved the initiative at a meeting on Friday morning.

EPB is already in the Internet service and telephone business and will expand those offerings.

The "huge construction project" would cost about $200 million to build.

Joe Ferguson, board chairman, said the high-speed fiberoptic network will be expanded throughout the EPB service area.

He said the aim is "to give our customers a world-class fiberoptic system."

Mr. Ferguson said Chattanooga will "leapfrog other communities in transporting data, including video, at warp speed."

Harold DePriest, EPB president and CEO, said development of the system will be a fairly lengthy process.

He said citizens will have ample opportunity to comment on the proposal.

Mr. DePriest said the system will be able to use "smart meters" that will allow customers to find ways to cut their electric usage.

He said studies show that communities that have this type system see a doubling in economic growth.

He said income from the system should pay for its development.

Officials said, "Fiber to the Home could have a significant impact on the economic health of the Chattanooga community, helping to bring more good jobs to the area through expansion of existing businesses, new business development, and the recruitment of businesses from outside our area."

EPB will apply to the state comptroller for approval for the new service.

The initiative must also receive approval from the City Council. It will take six votes on the council for approval.

Mr. DePriest said it would take about three years to build 2,000 miles of fiber to serve 80 percent of its customers. It would take another two years to provide it to all customers.

After three years, there would be 100,000 homes and 2,000 businesses served.

Mr. DePriest said, "If this is something the community wants, we really want to do it. We believe building it is very manageable."

Mayor Ron Littlefield said, "I've been encouraging the power board to move in this direction for a long, long time.

"This is necessary if Chattanooga is going to have the type of infrastructure that is necessary."

He said, "I'm 100 percent behind it. I'm encouraging the City Council to support it."

County Mayor Claude Ramsey called it "a good next step for economic development. I support it."

Construction of the system would be paid for with revenue bonds. The bonds would then be retired with income generated through the sale of Internet, video entertainment and digital phone services.

Preliminary studies indicate that about 80 percent of residents here would be interested in such services if they were offered as a bundle at a discount of 10 to 15 percent, the board was told.

The proposed changes are incorporated into a business plan that will be submitted to the state comptroller’s office, which has 60 days to respond and send back comments.

After that, the board must vote again on whether to go forward, and then schedule a period for public comments.

Then the board must vote for a third time on whether to proceed. “If you so choose, the plan then goes to the City Council for approval,” he said.

The council can vote the idea up or down, he said, or the council can decide to hold a referendum in which citizens would decide on whether EPB should be authorized to move forward with it.

But officials stressed that they hope to hear long before that whether local voters and public officials are in favor of the plan.

“Management is ready to implement this plan,” Mr. DePriest said. “If they want it, we’re ready to go forward. If they don’t want it, we want to know that pretty quickly.”

He said the system "will help ensure a growing supply of jobs for our children and our grandchildren. Fiber to the Home will be as critical to Chattanooga*s quality of life as electric power was in the 1930s or the interstate system was in the 1950s. On top of that, it will help make electricity in our area even more reliable and affordable."

He said, "Just as cities bypassed by the interstate system suffered economic decline, cities bypassed by Fiber to the Home could suffer in the future.

"Fiber to the Home is now the global telecommunications standard for
voice, video and data exchange. Cities around the world are already enjoying the benefits of Fiber to the Home infrastructures, including new jobs, new businesses and social benefits such as improved healthcare, education and public security.

"A recent study by a group of professors at the University of
Tennessee at Chattanooga and Tennessee State University suggests these economic and social benefits alone could top $600 million for
Chattanooga over 10 years."

Another study, verified by the Electric Power Research Institute,
indicates that Fiber to the Home will also allow EPB to make significant
improvements to its electric power distribution system, officials said. The infrastructure "can help the company locate problems earlier, restore outages more quickly and gain efficiencies that are not currently
available. It will also allow EPB to provide more tools to help customers reduce their power usage and cost."

Officials said the value to electric power customers in the form of reduced outages, energy conservation and other efficiencies is estimated at roughly $300 million over 10 years, bringing Fiber to the Home*s total value to the community to nearly $1 billion over the course of 10n years.

EPB plans to fund the construction of the infrastructure with income
generated by the sale of very high speed internet, video entertainment,
and digital phone. These products and services will be made available
to residential and business customers throughout EPB*s service territory, it was stated.

EPB plans to begin building the Fiber to the Home infrastructure as
soon as approvals are in place, with a goal to connect the first customers in the fall of 2008.