Multiple organizations gathered on June 2 to celebrate Bay Meadow’s participation of the state’s Residential Retrofit Program, which aims to bring more affordable and faster internet to lower income communities. The apartment complex became the first in the state to officially “go live” under the iniative.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo
SPRINGFIELD — When Luz Ramos talks about the Bay Meadow apartments in Springfield, she lauds the complex for its amenities and its ability to foster a tight-knit community that spans generations.
“I moved here with my son when I was 12 years old,” said Ramos, who — as of October — will have lived at the complex for exactly 30 years. “It was a beautiful place, and it still is a beautiful place to live.”
Despite a clear veneration for her longtime home, one amenity that has either been a major budget buster or elusive to many of Bay Meadow residents is internet service. The 12-building, 148-apartment complex in the Pine Point neighborhood mainly houses lower income residents, which means many must travel elsewhere for Wi-Fi access due to the costliness of the service, Ramos said.
However, thanks to a statewide broadband infrastructure initiative, Bay Meadow inhabitants as well as other residents living in public or affordable housing across Massachusetts will have speedier internet service at either smaller costs or no cost at all.
On June 2, U.S. Rep. Richard Neal (D-Springfield) gathered with representatives from the Massachusetts Broadband Institute, Preservation of Affordable Housing and Aervivo — the provider of the internet service — to celebrate Bay Meadow becoming the first location in the state connected under the Residential Retrofit Program.
The announcement comes at a time when many argue that internet is a necessity and not a luxury.
According to Mindy Torbit, the vice president of customer success at Aervivo, every one of the 148 households at Bay Meadow will now have access to up to gigabit symmetrical speed, meaning uploads and downloads are “lightning fast” without having to compromise bandwidth.
Additionally, POAH — the operator of the Bay Meadow apartments — is covering the costs at all 148 units for the next five years, Torbit said.
To make sure the internet is reliable, Torbit added that every residential unit is connected through a “dedicated private network,” meaning no one will have to share their network with a neighbor.
Because this could be the first time some residents have their own home internet, Torbit said Aervivo will also offer a basic digital literacy program through a partnership with a Massachusetts-based organization called Tech Goes Home. The program will allow residents to access in-person or virtual sessions covering topics like how to set up an email, how to navigate the internet or how to apply for a job.
“Having the digital literacy program, the devices, the fast, dedicated private network; this is really what digital equity looks like,” Torbit said. “Access, affordability, support and the education to back it up.”
Launched in February 2024 and funded by the U.S. Treasury’s Capital Projects Fund through the American Rescue Plan Act, MBI’s Residential Retrofit Program has awarded $38.9 million to deliver internet to more than 27,300 public and affordable housing units across the state.
The first round of awards for the program, announced in December, totaled $6.3 million and targeted infrastructure in more than 3,000 housing units, while a second round of awards totaling over $10 million and covering approximately 8,000 units in 26 other communities were announced in March.
Another round, announced last month, will award $22 million, according to Steve Baker, the director of Broadband and Digital Equity for the state’s Executive Office of Economic Development. He added that the state is now accepting a fourth wave of housing operators as well as a fifth round later this summer.
“There’s a significant amount of money going into these upgrades that’s going to provide economic opportunity for many,” Baker said.
As someone who oversaw the drafting of the American Rescue Plan when he was chair of the Ways and Means Committee, Neal said he takes great satisfaction in knowing that the Residential Retrofit Program was the beneficiary of the U.S. Treasury’s Capital Projects Fund, which received $10 billion in ARPA funding.
He said that announcement at Bay Meadow is a result of digital access work that has been done across multiple state administrations.
“I am thrilled to join the Healey-Driscoll administration in celebrating the delivery of high-speed internet to Bay Meadow Apartments,” Neal said. “Nearly 150 households across the commonwealth who will soon have access to high-speed internet will be better off thanks to our efforts.”
POAH President and CEO Aaron Gornstein called the new broadband service essential to his organization, which offers online financial coaching and a nutrition education program for Bay Meadow residents.
According to the state, POAH has more than 1,477 households in 13 municipalities currently participating in the Residential Retrofit Program.
“Beyond these particular programs here for our residents in Springfield, internet access enables them to participate in telehealth appointments, job training, credit building, and to support their children in their educational success,” Gornstein said. “So in other words, to us at POAH … this isn’t just an amenity, it’s a necessity.”
Having just received her GED last year, Ramos said the Residential Retrofit Program will help her save $105 a month, allowing her to focus on reaching other goals in life such as going to college.
She shared that her own personal network through the program will be hooked up in the coming days and added that she is excited to have her next-door neighbors over for studying sessions using the new internet service.
“This is going to open so many doors for me,” Ramos said. “Not only am I saving money, but I can get internet whenever I want now … I don’t have to drive anywhere.”
The state said housing operators interested in applying to the next round of the Residential Retrofit Program may submit an expression of interest form by July 31, according to the state. For more information, applicants may visit broadband.masstech.org/retrofit.
