Why this work matters
Connectivity that protects privacy, expands freedom, and stays accountable
Where gifts go
Dollars that stay in the network
Donations through Givebutter support neighborhood pilots and Digital Navigator training.
Digital Navigators
Hours and households in the field
Full Navigator programCommunity wireless
What a nonprofit WISP changes on a block
Neighborhood-scale wireless
Hubs and relays serve real blocks—not a national marketing map. Line-of-sight planning and phased installs keep promises honest.
Nonprofit stewardship
The mandate is digital equity and reliability for Buffalo households—not extracting lifetime value from locked-in contracts.
Local partners, local support
Libraries, landlords, schools, and Digital Navigators sit beside network ops so help is human when something breaks.
Want the engineering picture? How Connect Buffalo builds networks → and line-of-sight planner →
Privacy
Access without surveillance theater
No ad-profile business
We are not in the business of selling behavioral profiles. Aggregate ops metrics help restore service; they are not a marketing funnel.
Dignity in onboarding
Support stays focused on connectivity—Navigators follow scripted troubleshooting and do not ask for unrelated personal paperwork.
Transparent policy
What we collect on the website, what stays local in drafts, and how donations flow through Givebutter are spelled out on Privacy.
Freedom
Reliability is a freedom issue
School & work without rationing data
Homework, telehealth, and job applications should not compete with a phone hotspot’s fairness cap at 9 p.m.
Choice without fear
Community wireless exists so underserved blocks are not forced into one opaque plan, one tower, or one landlord-controlled lobby Wi‑Fi.
Civic participation stays online
Stable access keeps residents in the loop for city services, mutual aid, and neighborhood organizing—not offline by accident.
Benefits
Who gains when a neighborhood stays online
Residents
- Whole-home Wi‑Fi designed for shared households, not a single tethered phone
- Clear escalation paths when links degrade—less scripted call-center limbo
- Affordable-access pathways published separately from marketing slogans
Landlords & hosts
- Predictable rooftop / wall installs with neighborhood rollout phases
- Plain-language permission path on Hosts & properties—not surprise tower leases
- Partner templates for site access and resident outreach
Institutions
- Measurable pilots with quarterly reporting commitments
- Navigator programs that extend library and school digital inclusion work
- Stewardship disclosures aligned with Transparency & giving
Accountability
Impact without the marketing fog
Evidence
Survey signals & reporting cadence
Survey evidence
Where connectivity stress shows up
Impact bars count how often households cited each stressor—respondents could select more than one.
Daily-life impact (multi-select)
Mentions across surveyed households.
Outage frequency (last six months)
Self-reported buckets—the tail matters for trust.
Current provider mix
Self-reported ISP at time of survey.
Top ZIP signals
Highest response volume—planning cuts, not eligibility lists.
| ZIP | n | Avg bill | Outages | Switch % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14211 | 71 | $81 | 2.76 | 62% |
| 14215 | 64 | $75 | 2.88 | 55% |
| 14207 | 52 | $79 | 2.63 | 60% |
| 14213 | 48 | $73 | 2.44 | 55% |
| 14212 | 44 | $72 | 2.57 | 52% |
| 14208 | 39 | $75 | 2.92 | 56% |
Quarterly cadence
What we report each quarter
Availability windows and mean time to restore after verified outages.
Tagged root causes—power, upstream, radio, relay, CPE—so fixes stick.
Homes passed, activations, and neighborhood rollout milestones.
Training completions, tier‑1 resolution, and resident satisfaction.
Host sites, municipalities, and anchor institutions on cadence.
Subsidy use, reserves posture, and narrative cross-links to Transparency.
Keep going
Help grow neighborhood impact
Donate, volunteer, or check whether your block is in an active planning phase.