About the network
Southbank covers about 42 blocks of Charleston’s northeast side, mostly shotgun houses and doubles. The network was built by the public library’s branch staff and its regulars after a provider’s fiber build stopped six blocks short of the neighborhood.
Schematic
Hover over or tap a node for its details, and click or tap again to open it. With a keyboard, move to the schematic and use the arrow keys.
Uptime
99.98% uptime over the last 90 days, with no days of degraded service or maintenance.
Governance
- Owned by
- Southbank Mesh Cooperative
- Legal home
- Nonprofit corporation with a member-elected board
- Members
- 1,051 households, one vote each
- Monthly assembly
- First Thursday of each month, 7:00 pm, at the recreation center
- Annual assembly
- Every January
- Maintenance fund
- $5 a month per household, suggested. No household is disconnected for not paying.
Stewards
Elected by the members. Listed by first name and initial.
- Maurice L.Network steward · since 2026
- Isaiah C.Treasurer · since 2026
- Desmond D.Membership steward · since 2024
- Lamar G.Training steward · since 2025
- Kwame R.Rooftops steward · since 2025
- Sunita F.Secretary · since 2024
Backhaul
Links that carry the network’s traffic to the wider internet.
| Link | Medium | Capacity | Far end | Peak use yesterday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LT-60-BH1 | Fiber | 10 Gbps | Charleston internet exchange | 20% |
Maintenance log
Firmware 4.6.2 rollout. Staged firmware rollout to every node, one hub’s area at a time. Each node restarted once.
Rooftop agreements reviewed; 4 renewed with new building owners.
N-3294 replaced under warranty after its radio stopped associating.
Expansion: eleven new nodes in 2026, mostly in grids A1, A3 and B2.
Annual assembly: 46 members attended and elected four stewards.
Hardware refresh: 5 nodes upgraded to Stoop R6 over the year.
Expansion: eight new nodes in 2025, mostly in grids A2, A3 and B2.
Mount on N-3147 re-secured after the host reported a loose mast.
Heat wave: 2 rooftop nodes throttled; all recovered overnight.
New hub on the community health center roof: N-3267.
Storm damage: 8 dishes realigned and one mast replaced.
Mount on N-3084 re-secured after the host reported a loose mast.
Steward training on monitoring and fault-finding: 16 attended.
Dish on N-3090 re-aimed after a neighbor’s new extension blocked the path.
Expansion: four new nodes in 2024, mostly in grids B2, D3 and F2.
Network switched on: 25 nodes installed by 155 volunteers over a weekend.
Founding assembly: the Southbank Mesh Cooperative adopts its charter and elects five stewards.