By Pepper Parr
May 19th, 2026
BURLINGTON, ON
The City has received proposals from telecommunications carriers to install fibre optic networks.
Telecommunications carriers are planning an accelerated fibre optic network build-outs within the City, beginning as early as 2026.
The City has received proposals from telecommunications carriers to install fibre optic networks that would service thousands of homes and businesses through accelerated deployment within the City’s right-of-way. These projects typically involve multi-phase construction programs focused on urban areas. Work includes installation of fibre optic cables and related infrastructure within the City’s rights-of-way to support future service private service connections.
The City does not currently have sufficient resources to manage the significant increase in permitting, coordination, inspection, and public relations that will be required to support build-out projects.
These projects typically involve multi-phase construction programs focused on urban areas. Work includes installation of fibre optic cables and related infrastructure within the City’s rights-of-way to support future service private service connections.
The City of Burlington permits utility companies (e.g. telecommunications companies) to install, operate, and maintain its plant within the municipal right‑ of‑ way (ROW) through the execution of a Municipal Access Agreement (MAA). The MAA establishes the legal and technical framework governing the utility’s access to the ROW, including location, design, construction standards, restoration obligations, safety requirements, and financial securities. The agreement ensures the municipality retains control over its assets and coordination of competing uses of the ROW, while providing the utility with predictable, non‑ exclusive access necessary to deliver essential services.
The Director of Engineering Services is given delegated authority to negotiate and execute these agreements in a form satisfactory to the Commissioner, Legal and Legislative Services and City Solicitor.
They call it “pulling cable”
Due to the scale and pace of fibre network buildouts planned by telecommunications carriers, the carriers are requesting municipalities to dedicate additional resources to support timely permit processing and inspection services. Fibre buildouts are both planned and underway in area municipalities, including the Town of Oakville and the City of Hamilton, and carriers are anticipated to begin similar work in Burlington as early as 2026. City staff have undertaken a scan of peer municipalities and engaged directly with them to inform Burlington’s approach, including understanding best practices and implementation considerations.
The City will create Resource Funding Agreements to ensure the City is adequately resourced through carrier-funded temporary staffing and operational support. The agreements will be structured so that carriers fund all incremental costs required to meet defined service levels.
The agreement will support the timely installation of critical broadband infrastructure while ensuring the City is adequately resourced to manage the project and protect the interests of residents, businesses, and the community during construction.
Implications:
There will be no financial impact to the City; all costs will be recovered through agreements. Temporary contract staff will be required and funded through the agreements.
The additional staff funded by the agreements will oversee construction and ensure City infrastructure and natural assets are protected and properly restored and assist the public with any issues that may arise during construction.
Background
The type of trenching is determined by the location and the number of people who will want access.
Across Ontario, municipalities, including Burlington, continue to experience gaps in high-speed fibre infrastructure, particularly as demand for reliable, high-capacity connectivity increases for both residences and businesses.
There was a time when the city owned what fibre option cabling existed. Burlington sold its telecom and fibre-optic division, FibreWired Burlington Hydro Communications, to Cogeco Cable on June 30, 2008, for $12.6 million CAD. The sale involved FibreWired’s 400-km fibre optic network which Burlington Hydro had operated to serve local businesses and public institutions.
That sale in 2008 turned out to be a year that the city experienced a significant surplus.
The Resource Funding Agreement (RFA) complements the Municipal Access Agreement (MAA) by addressing the additional municipal capacity and coordination requirements associated with an accelerated or large-scale utility build-out within the municipal right-of-way. While the MAA establishes the standing legal authority and conditions for access to the ROW, an RFA enables the municipality to recover costs and secure dedicated resources needed to manage a heightened level of activity over a compressed timeframe. This includes funding for temporary or incremental staffing for permitting support, engineering review, traffic management coordination, engineering and forestry inspection, and increased engagement with other infrastructure stakeholders. A core principle of the RFA is full cost-recovery for the municipality.
Getting the cable into the buildings is the last step.
Delegating authority to the Director of Engineering Services to negotiate and execute Resource Funding Agreements will allow the City to be responsive to telecommunication carrier build-out proposals, reduce the risk of delay associated with Council approval cycles and avoid seeking repeated Council approval for each telecommunication carrier that pursues a build-out project in the City. This approach will complement the existing delegated authority established for Municipal Access Agreements.
Community Engagement and Communications
Large-scale fibre deployments will increase construction activity across multiple neighbourhoods, resulting in temporary impacts: noise, Boulevard and sidewalk work.
Each Resource Funding Agreement will require a comprehensive communication plan that provides advance notice of construction activities, outlines timelines, impacts, and restoration plans and includes complaint tracking and response protocols. Carriers will be responsible for implementing communication plans, with oversight from the City.
This all goes to City Council on the 26th of May.
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