As we know all too well, the District is a divided city. Those divisions exist even in the world of bits and bytes, unfortunately, with access to broadband services reaching 97 percent in Ward 3 while barely hitting the 40 percent mark in some communities east of the Anacostia River.

Last week, the city started trying to do something about that.

At his bi-weekly press conference, Mayor Vince Gray announced the completion of the first part of what will eventually be a citywide ultra-fast broadband network that will bring access to more people at lower costs. (Just how fast is the new fiber-optic network? It’s 100 gigabit-per-second fast, or roughly 10 times faster than what you might get with your normal internet provider.)

Funded by a $17 million federal grant, city officials hope that the 170-mile network known as DC-CAN will increase internet use in under-served communities and bring down costs for all District residents.

It aims to do so in two ways. First off, the District identified 250 community anchor institutions that will get heavily discounted high-speed internet. So far, 24 are operational; service costs $470 a month for 10 megabits of dedicated speed. (For you techies, if that seems expensive compared to what Comcast offers, it is. City officials argue that the service is more like a T1 connection.) Those organizations can then provide internet to their customers or set up open wireless networks.

Second, the network provides a middle mile backbone for companies like Comcast and Verizon to piggy-back off of — basically, the city laid down the wires, and the companies connect them to our houses. In theory, that will mean lower costs for everyone.

While only the first segment of the network is currently online — 36 miles of cable in wards 7 and 8 — the entire District should be wired by 2013.

There have been some concerns raised about the network, though. Some of the community anchor organizations aren’t particularly big, and the $470 a month they’d pay for 10 megabits of access is still beyond what they can afford. Moreover, some activists who have worked on bridging the digital divide wonder why the District can’t just allow community groups and neighborhoods to establish open Wi-Fi networks on the existing DC-NET network. (An effort was made to do so in Bloomingdale last year.) Finally, there’s some skepticism that any of the major internet service providers like Comcast and Verizon will actually provide cheaper service.

Regardless, Gray and other city officials see huge advantages to the new network, ranging from personal internet connections to increased opportunities for local businesses, both big and small.

“With this 100G connection, we are making history by providing state-of-the-art network capacity that will help create jobs and grow the District’s economy well into the 21st century. DC-CAN will help pave the way for greater broadband adoption across the District of Columbia, and I’m proud that we will be the first city in the United States to make such a forward-thinking investment in crucial technology infrastructure,” Gray said in a statement.