Cedar Falls Utilities
The Cedar Falls Utilities (CFU) is a municipally-owned public utility company serving Cedar Falls, Iowa. CFU provides municipal water service, electricity generation and distribution, natural gas service, and combined cable television and Internet access to its customers[1].
CFU participates in municipal efforts to promote economic development[2], which in turn results in a larger customer base for its utility services. The utility donated land to form the Cedar Falls Industrial and Technology Park[3] in the late 1960s[4] and in more recent years has aggressively expanded access to its communications services, including cable television and broadband Internet access, which the city promotes as a key factor in its economic-development strategy[5]. The communications utility began service in 1996[6] after a 1994 community referendum.
CFU was an early entrant into the market for renewable energy in the United States, investing in a wind-energy project in 1998 along with six other Iowa municipal utilities[7]. CFU is projected to obtain 10% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2010[8].
[edit] References
- ^ Cedar Falls Utilities company profile
- ^ "A Study of the Economic and Community Benefits of Cedar Falls, Iowa's Municipal Telecommunications Network"
- ^ City of Cedar Falls
- ^ City of Cedar Falls
- ^ City of Cedar Falls
- ^ "Criteria for Measuring the Financial and Economic Performance of Municipally Owned Broadband Enterprises"
- ^ American Wind Energy Association
- ^ Cedar Falls Utilities
