Botetourt County Receives Grant to Expand Fiber
The Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) awarded Botetourt County, VA a grant of $1.3 million to expand fiber for the county.
The grant will be used as part of a project to install fiber to provide high-speed internet to 548 new addresses, including 30 businesses. Approximately 52% of the cost of the project is being funded by the VATI grant, and the remainder will be contributed in partnership with Lumos, a premier provider of fiber broadband internet, and Botetourt County.
“This expansion makes it possible for more people in Botetourt County to have fast, reliable fiber internet, which has become a necessity because so many of us are working and learning from home, ” said Diego Anderson, Lumos senior vice president and general manager. “We are very much looking forward to this new project and excited to bring fiber optic broadband to more households in Botetourt County.”
The VATI grant provides financial support to develop high-speed broadband infrastructure in underserved areas. Projects are selected by VATI based on community needs as well as project cost considerations. Amounts awarded are based on how much infrastructure is needed in targeted areas. Botetourt County is one of 11 areas of Virginia that will gain access to high-speed internet from VATI grants totaling $29.6 million.
The Botetourt County project will begin the installation of 59 miles of fiber-optic cable, including areas near Wheatland Road, Old Hollow Road, Lithia, and Exit 162 along Rt. 11. With this announcement, Botetourt County adds to the more than 1,400 residents and businesses who have already been included in announcements of broadband expansions in the past year. As a result, officials anticipate that approximately 85% of residents will soon have access to broadband internet.
With funding in place, the Lumos technical teams will begin working on installation timelines. Preliminary goals indicate that many addresses will have access to the new fiber service later this year and the remainder by mid-year 2022. Lumos will send a notice to residents when construction begins in their area.
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