Amherst and Bedford County leaders move forward on path to rural broadband service
Monday's vote in Bedford County and Amherst's vote last week will pave the way for broadband service to be extended to unserved areas.
January 26, 2010The Bedford County Broadband Authority voted on Monday to enter into negotiations with Ashburn-based DigitalBridge Communications Corporation to deliver digital broadband service to unserved and underserved areas of the county.
Monday’s decision followed a similar vote last week in Amherst to move broadband talks forward with the same firm. DigitalBridge was one of two firms to express interest in taking on this endeavor in the two counties. The Authority votes were necessary to allow negotiations to take place on an agreement between each county and the firm that could result in the expansion of high-speed Internet coverage to the rural areas of each county.
“The Board of Supervisors and our Economic Development Authority identified broadband service as a top priority for our community and this partnership with DigitalBridge is a major milestone in achieving that work,” said Bedford County Administrator Kathleen Guzi.
Bryan David, Executive Director of Virginia’s Region 2000 Economic Development Council, began discussions in each of the four counties in Region 2000 in early 2009 about the economic benefits that could come from providing this service to rural areas. He assisted Amherst and Bedford counties in forming independent Broadband Authorities that would enable public/private partnerships to be formed. He’s currently partnering with Appomattox and Campbell counties to offer support for similar broadband decisions.
“Under this approach, the private firm is able to take on its rightful role to develop, operate, and maintain a broadband network in an unserved area, because the county agrees to help remove barriers to service,” David said.
Chris Adams, Chairman of the Amherst County Board of Supervisors, agrees that the public/private partnership is the best model to achieve “last mile” broadband. “Our partnership with DigitalBridge moves us forward in providing this important service to our citizens,” Adams said. “It builds on our long-term vision for community and economic development.”
“Broadband is a transformational technology that makes our residents and businesses more competitive in today's economy," David said. “It’s exciting to see our counties recognizing this value. Their actions today will put them at an economic advantage when this economic downturn is over.”