CARES. ARPA. IIJA. These bills and more have put billions into the state and local government market. We break down the major federal funding packages and how they’re being put to use.
ROYALSTON At the meeting of the Selectboard on Tuesday, March 1, Rick Martin presented Royalston’s Selectboard with a draft agreement between the town and Charter Communications for Charter to provide cable television and high-speed internet.
Broadband concerns put private providers in spotlight
Published: 2/18/2021 12:31:45 PM
BOSTON In a pandemic that has forced many aspects of daily life online from work to school to doctor’s appointments efforts to build out broadband infrastructure still face challenges, with private providers hesitant to invest in some unserved areas and lawmakers calling for the internet to be treated more like a public service going forward.
“There is no way that the state has done enough to close the gap, the digital divide in the commonwealth that used to apply mostly in our minds to rural and underserved areas,” Sen. Adam Hinds, D-Pittsfield, said. “And now the emergency of the digital divide in our downtowns is even more apparent.”
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In the past month, both towns have negotiated contracts with local provider Fiber Connect LLC to wire with fiber optics the remaining areas that still are without it, and to provide high-speed internet service in the towns for 10 years.
The agreements are awaiting final approval by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute, which administers state broadband money. And both contracts are nearly identical, since both towns were in a similar position and are some of the remaining Berkshire communities without full broadband coverage.
âIt took us 15 years to get to this point,â said George McGurn, chairman of Egremontâs Select Board. âWeâve been struggling.â