The city of West Des Moines filed a motion Dec. 31 asking the court to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Mediacom, which claims the city is improperly financing a nearly $50 million citywide conduit network through the state’s Urban Renewal Law. In an open letter posted to the city’s website last week, the city said “we strongly disagree with Mediacom’s allegations, and we have no intention of abandoning our efforts to make this citywide project a reality.” (Read more: Mediacom sues West Des Moines, requesting stop of conduit network with Google Fiber) “Although we understand that reducing barriers to competition is not always supported by existing industry, the reality is that high-speed internet was identified in our 2020 Citizen Survey as the ‘most needed improvement’ in our neighborhoods, and it is an important tool to retain and attract businesses and employees in our community,” the statement said. The full statement by the city is available online.
