Comprehensive Broadband Planning Initiative

The Comprehensive Broadband Planning Initiative is Cook County’s long-term strategy to ensure every resident, business, and institution has access to reliable, affordable, high-speed internet. Broadband is no longer a luxury. It is essential for education, employment, healthcare, and civic participation. Yet many communities across Cook County, especially in the South, West, and unincorporated areas, continue to face barriers to digital access.

Through this initiative, Cook County is leading with intention, coordination, and community partnership to close the digital divide once and for all.

Our Goals

Universal Connectivity – Ensure all communities, regardless of geography or income, have access to high-speed broadband.
Digital Equity  – Center communities historically left behind in the digital age—prioritizing racial equity, affordability, and accessibility.
Sustainable Infrastructure  – Build and modernize fiber infrastructure to support long-term growth, innovation, and resilience.
Public Accountability  – Develop governance structures that keep broadband infrastructure community-informed and publicly accountable.

Our Projects

The Comprehensive Broadband Planning Initiative includes several major infrastructure and access efforts underway across the county:

Cook County Fiber Network (CCFN) – Southland

Formerly known as the Chicago Southland Fiber Network (CSFN), the CCFN – Southland project is a transformational infrastructure investment designed to close the digital divide and unlock economic opportunity across the South Suburbs of Cook County.

This long-term initiative focuses on building and expanding high-speed fiber broadband connections to critical anchor institutions—including schools, libraries, municipal offices, healthcare providers, and public safety agencies—that serve as digital and economic lifelines for residents.

Rooted in a commitment to equity and measurable impact, the CCFN – Southland expansion prioritizes communities with the highest Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) in Illinois. These are neighborhoods where poverty, unemployment, housing instability, and limited transportation have historically created deep barriers to opportunity. In such places, reliable broadband is a necessity for education, healthcare, employment, and civic participation.

Key features of the initiative include:

Gigabit-speed fiber delivery to municipal corridors and commercial zones
Direct broadband access for community anchor institutions
Free public Wi-Fi at participating sites to serve residents without home internet
Support for local economic ecosystems, including small businesses and entrepreneurs

Broadband at the Housing Authority of Cook County (HACC)

This initiative will upgrade broadband internet connections at all Housing Authority-managed properties across Cook County. Many of these sites have never been wired for broadband, and existing infrastructure is insufficient to meet the needs of both staff and residents.

The project will deliver:

Network infrastructure upgrades, including last-mile fiber connections
Wi-Fi installation in common areas to support resident access
Enhanced computing resources in community rooms and shared facilities

This work requires collaboration between the Housing Authority, the Bureau of Technology (BoT), the Bureau of Economic Development (BED), local internet service providers (ISPs), and HACC’s contracted IT and service vendors.

By investing in reliable broadband infrastructure, this effort supports digital inclusion, economic mobility, and improved access to online services for some of Cook County’s most underserved populations.

Circuit Court Broadband Modernization

Cook County is upgrading broadband infrastructure across its Circuit Court system to better serve the public and strengthen access to justice in the digital age.

This initiative will enhance connectivity at courthouses and justice facilities, enabling:

Remote legal services and virtual hearings
Digital court navigation tools for self-represented litigants
Improved access to re-entry and diversion programs
More efficient operations for court personnel and service providers

Many individuals navigating the court system face overlapping barriers, including lack of internet access, limited digital literacy, and transportation challenges. By modernizing broadband in these spaces, Cook County is helping bridge those gaps—making the justice system more accessible, equitable, and responsive to community needs.

This work is part of a broader vision to integrate broadband equity into every aspect of public infrastructure, especially where it directly impacts residents’ rights, livelihoods, and second chances.