Voters in Lafayette, La., will go to the polls tomorrow to decide what has become one of the more contentious battles over a utility company’s plan to build a fiber-to-the-home network.

The Lafayette Utility System FTTH plan has become something of a poster child for municipally owned broadband networks. In addition to intense opposition from the incumbent service providers, BellSouth and Cox Communications, it has also been targeted for criticism by a national foundation and a local citizens’ group. At the same time, local support hasn’t appeared to subside--at its most recent meeting, the Citizens for Direct Action listened to a heated debate on the topic and then voted 9-3 in favor. The LUS plan also has the backing of the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce and the Lafayette Economic Development Authority.

The issue citizens will actually vote on Saturday is whether the city of Lafayette can issue up to $125 million in 25-year revenue bonds “for the purpose of constructing, acquiring, developing, extending and improving a local communications network that will offer telephone, cable TV, high-speed fiber to the home (FTTH) Internet and other related services.”

The vote would also allow the city, which owns LUS, to repurchase or pay the bonds or improve the city’s other utilities system, which provides water, electric and sewer service. The bonds are to be repaid first from the revenues of the communication system being built but secondarily from revenues of other utilities.

BellSouth has opposed the LUS plan, saying it will provide fiber to the curb for Lafayette within the next four years. As the vote goes down to the wire, local officials met with BellSouth and Cingular employees, urging them to vote against the measure.