DigitalC, the local nonprofit internet provider focused on connecting the unconnected in Cleveland, has taken a next step to ensure residents in every Cleveland neighborhood have fast, reliable internet by building a wireless gigabit point-to-point network.

The company announced this past Tuesday, July 23, that it has partnered with BlueBridge Networks to add a second data center—now live—to expand to a broader client base, with more reliability.

A DigitalC installer sets up Canopy high-speed internet service at a Cleveland home. Residents receive minimum speeds of 100/100 Mbps for $18 a monthFor the past four years, DigitalC has operated with a single data center linked to one fiber upstream provider. While this setup met initial needs, reliance on a single connection point meant that incidents—such as accidents affecting the fiber provider’s infrastructure—directly impacted service to subscribers.

With a rapidly expanding subscriber base, the need for a safeguarded system has become more pronounced.

The move advances DigitalC’s commitment to providing optimized service to subscribers of its high-speed home internet service, Canopy.

One of the goals is to prevent interruption of service to DigitalC customers if one data center temporarily goes down. Creating redundancy with more towers and the addition of the second data center provides the backup the company has been needing.

The primary data center is located at Everstream in Parma, with the second data center having recently launched in Playhouse Square at BlueBridge Networks.

“Launching our second data center marks a key growth milestone for DigitalC, enabling us to build a more resilient network designed for the needs of Cleveland,” says Adrian Tetu, DigitalC’s head of engineering. “This ability to scale strengthens our redundancy capabilities and ensures our commitment to uninterrupted, high-quality service.”

Bridging the digital divide

DigitalC’s internet access is intentionally easy to obtain, with its mission to bridge the digital divide in Cleveland. The company doesn’t do background or income checks, and there is no contract.

The current cost of internet service through DigitalC is $18 per month, and customers are locked into the price for five years. After that, the cost will be based on inflation.

Towers are currently being built throughout the city, covering 70 square miles from the east side to west side to create a perimeter around the city. Each tower will have multiple links for redundancy, in case one link fails. Depending on a client’s location, DigitalC will be able to choose which data center is best to act as primary in order to balance the load between the two centers.

DigitalC Chief Operating Officer Jose Valdez in front of the MidTown Tech Hive, DigitalC's headquartersSince January, when the buildout began, user numbers have increased, according to DigitalC COO Jose Valdez. He says the project is expected to take 18 months to complete.

“We expect usage to go up month-to-month, [and] we're already seeing that,” he says. “You have to build out the network before you can put people on the network.”

Currently, DigitalC has approximately 700 customers on its new network. With the recent improvements, Valdez says the goal is to add 80 to 100 additional customers enrolled each week.

“As we bring up towers, we have a waitlist,” he explains, “and we start bringing up our subscribers on that."

In an agreement with the City of Cleveland, DigitalC has promised it will have 3,500 subscribers in the city by the end of this year and to increase its subscriber base to 23,500 within four years.

Valdez says he expects to exceed those numbers. “The network is built to do exactly that,” he says.

The right partners

When DigitalC was ready to start ramping up its coverage, officials knew they needed dedicated partners, as well as resources, to launch a second data center.

DigitalC partnered with BlueBridge Networks and secured an undisclosed amount of funding from the BlueBridge owners, the Goodman family.

Kevin Goodman, managing director and partner at BlueBridge NetworkThe infrastructure at BlueBridge Networks creates an environment where major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) come together, facilitating direct peering. This allows for faster and more cost-effective information exchange, improving the quality of network connectivity and enabling DigitalC to expand its service offerings.

The second data center location comes with a history. BlueBridge managing director Kevin Goodman is very familiar with DigitalC.

DigitalC founder Dorothy Baunach was Goodman’s mentor, before the organization even began. When DigitalC first launched in 2015, Baunach reached out to Goodman for advice. Goodman still has that passion for bridging the digital divide, so Goodman and BlueBridge gave their “time, talent, and treasure” to this recent second data center launch. 

“It brings a lot of satisfaction to me not just professionally, but personally,” says Goodman. “It changes what I do. It changes the way I think about what I do. It has affected my career in a profound way.”

BlueBridge often works with nonprofits that connect people to resources to improve quality of life through digital connection. In some cases, that digital reach comes through the arts.

BlueBridge clients include Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Orchestra, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, to name a few.

“Every day has a purpose, and it has some very specific purposes,” muses Goodman. “It provides us an opportunity to love and serve in the community where we live in areas that are important to us. Whether it be the arts, poverty, education, those kinds of things are really what we’ve focused on through the years here.”

The data center being placed in the BlueBridge Networks building means added layers of protection and considerations at a fraction of the cost, Goodman says. High availability, security, compliance, law, public policy, and more are all value adds.

DigitalC’s Valdez notes that some customers are already using Canopy as a secondary internet in their homes.

“As we continue to evolve as a community-based internet service provider, DigitalC remains committed to investing in next-generation technology to support our network,” he promises. “This new data center is not just a technical enhancement—it further establishes DigitalC as a leader in the telecommunications industry.”

What else is on the horizon? Testing on an upgraded internet package is already complete. So as DigitalC’s capabilities increase, be on the lookout soon for new upgrade options.

With all this growth, DigitalC is already looking into a potential third data center to further enhance its future services network architecture.