The Buildout: New York commits $70M to public broadband

The state of New York awarded more than $70 million through the ConnectALL Municipal Infrastructure Grant program for projects that will connect more than 25,000 homes and businesses. The funding will allow municipalities to build 800 miles of public broadband infrastructure to connect underserved upstate regions. As a press release from New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's office explains, infrastructure funded through the program "will be owned by a public entity or publicly controlled and Internet Service Providers will use the new broadband infrastructure to provide New Yorkers with affordable, high quality service options." Funding recipients by region/project in this round include the city of Syracuse for its Surge Link network, which first launched last year ($10.8 million, connecting 13,000 locations); Livingston County, for its Light Up Livingston project, in partnership with ISP Empire Access ($26.5 million, 4,000 locations); Franklin County and the Development Authority of the North Country (DANC), in partnership with ISP SlicFiber ($2.4 million, 1,600 locations); Southern Tier Network, in partnership with ISP FiberSpark ($18.2 million, 4,200 locations); the village and town of Sherburne and town of Columbus, for the Sherburne Connect network, in partnership with FiberSpark and FyberCom ($6.9 million, 500 locations); and the towns of Dryden and Caroline, for the Dryden Fiber project ($8.9 million; 2,600 locations). Funding for the ConnectALL program comes from the US Treasury Department's capital projects fund, via the American Rescue Plan.

Shentel's Glo Fiber will soon head to Zanesville, Ohio. In a press release, the company said the planned network will reach roughly 13,800 homes and businesses in the region. The announcement follows news last month that Glo Fiber is planning to reach 2,500 locations in Greenfield, Ohio. Glo Fiber announced earlier this year that it was conducting engineering work to expand to 40,000 Ohio locations overall – including Greenfield and Zanesville – "throughout 2024 and beyond."

Breezeline was selected, following a bidding process, to deliver connectivity to school buildings in two districts in New Hampshire and Virginia. In New Hampshire, Breezeline will provide a dedicated network delivering up to 1 Gbit/s to Somersworth High School, in addition to building a fiber network connection between the high school and other district schools and administrative offices, impacting roughly 1,336 students. In Virginia, Breezeline will bring a 5 Gbit/s connection to the Colonial Beach School District, impacting nearly 600 students.

Zayo, the largest funding winner in the NTIA's Middle Mile grant program, has tapped Tilson to design and build a middle mile network in Nevada. The network, which is being funded with $153 million from the NTIA and Nevada state agencies, will span 800 miles and ultimately connect 40,000 locations. Construction will begin in 2025. In total, Zayo was awarded $92.9 million from the NTIA's $1 billion program for middle mile buildouts.

Surf Internet has completed a "significant phase" of its buildout in Newton County, Indiana, reaching 90% of the region. The ISP is building out in partnership with the Newton County Economic Development Commission (EDC), funded with $4 million from the county, awarded in September 2023, and matched with $6.6 million from Surf. According to a press release, the network is delivering fiber connectivity to nearly 4,000 homes, with other ISPs including Northwestern Indiana Telephone Co. (NITCO) and Vertical Horizon Networks set to cover an additional 1,500 homes. Surf Internet said construction will continue in other parts of Newton County, including Kentland and Goodland, later this year. Elsewhere in Indiana, Surf Internet announced progress on its buildout in South Bend, recently expanding to Clay Township, where it plans to reach over 2,700 additional homes by fall 2024.

The state of Virginia awarded more than $41 million for ten broadband infrastructure projects through the Virginia Telecommunications Initiative (VATI). The projects will serve 20 localities and more than 18,550 unserved homes, businesses and community anchor institutions, according to a press release from Gov. Glenn Youngkin's office. The largest sum ($12.2 million) went to the Thomas Jefferson Planning Commission District in Central Virginia, in partnership with Firefly Fiber Broadband, a subsidiary of the Central Virginia Electric Cooperative. Funding was otherwise awarded to several counties, some in partnership with ISPs. That includes Rockbridge County, with Brightspeed ($975,865); and Orange County, with FiberLync ($2.1 million). Rockbridge County also received $1.2 million for BARC Connects, a broadband subsidiary of BARC Electric Cooperative.

TDS Telecommunications launched initial services for 190 addresses in Necedah, Wisconsin. The company started construction in the region last year and said it will "gradually increase" services as it continues to complete work. Once complete, the network is expected to reach 805 locations. According to a press release, the build is being partially funded with a $1.08 million Public Service Commission of Wisconsin Broadband Access Grant awarded to TDS in November of 2021.

GoNetspeed plans to start construction this fall to bring its fiber network to Middletown, Connecticut. In a press release, the company said it will invest $2.4 million in the region to connect more than 3,000 homes and businesses. Initial service is expected to launch later this year. GoNetspeed is funded by Oak Hill Capital.

Charter's Spectrum launched services for more than 2,300 homes and businesses in Tuscaloosa, Greene and Hale Counties, Alabama. The new network is part of Charter's commitment through the FCC's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF).