Billings defends iProvo

PROVO — During his State of the City report Thursday, Mayor Lewis Billings took Provoans on a trip down memory lane to buoy support for a current project and to raise hopes about Provo's future.

In the 1940s, Provo undertook a project to create Provo City Power. Over 60 years, it's grown to become the largest public electrical utility in the state with the lowest utility rates, Billings said. But not everyone was excited about the plan initially.

"There was a huge outcry from those who said it was a bad idea," he said.

Billings sees a connection between the Provo City Power project and a current city undertaking.

"Just like those who studied and decided to create Provo Power, iProvo has its strong critics," he said.

Though the iProvo project — which provides Internet, phone and television/video services — has encountered a number of challenges, Billings said critics are its greatest impediment to substantial new subscriber growth. However, he remains positive about iProvo's future.

"We remain optimistic and committed to achieving success with this important project," Billings said.

City Councilman George Stewart — who recently aired a report that states 1,381 customers canceled their iProvo subscription in 2007 — sat on the front row during Billings' noon address in the Municipal Council Chambers. Stewart said he felt like Billings was lumping him in with the critics.

"I'm not a critic. I just want to find the solution," he said. "These are brutal facts, and they're not fun to talk about."

Stewart said he also disagreed with Billings comparing Provo City Power, a static "natural monopoly," to iProvo, a small service provider in a fast-changing industry with deep-pocketed competition.

"That's not an apples to apples comparison," he said.

Billings also found time in his speech to discuss the state of Provo's economy.

"I'm pleased to report we have not raised taxes," he said.

Provo also has a swath of economic development and redevelopment projects to benefit the community, Billings said. Among them is the Southgate Center project — which will include new stores such as Target, Circuit City and PetSmart.

And there's talk of a conference center coming to Provo, where people are "willing to come, spend their dollars and then take themselves and all their problems home," the mayor said. But that's all still in the works.