Clarke County issued the following announcement on Sept. 9
During a special meeting on Aug. 31, 2021, the Clarke County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to participate in a regional Virginia Telecommunications Initiative (VATI) grant with All Points Broadband and a number of surrounding localities through the Northern Shenandoah Valley Regional Commission (NSVRC). Clarke County expects to receive news in December on whether the state grant application was successful. As proposed in the grant, the $23.5 million project would be funded with $9.6 million from All Points, $8.6 million from the VATI program, and $5.4 million from Clarke County.
If the grant is approved by the state, Clarke County will have 90 days to enter into an agreement with the NSVRC and All Points Broadband to execute the project. The project, as submitted in the VATI application, involves installation of approximately 290 miles of fiber infrastructure to unserved areas in Clarke County. Unserved areas are defined by parameters set in the grant. Project construction is estimated to take 24 months to complete.
The VATI grant process allows incumbent providers to challenge areas as being unserved and therefore not eligible for grant funding. For this reason, detailed maps of where the new fiber will be run — if Clarke receives the VATI funding — will not be available until later in the year. If funding is received, the county will provide maps and updated timelines on its website (clarkecounty.gov).
Customer rates quoted in the grant application by All Points include a one-time $199 installation fee (includes 500-foot service drop) and $59.99 a month for 50-by-50 Mbps. Other packages with more data, including those for businesses, will also be available. Customers who sign up within 12 months of the service being available will have the long drop charge waived (this fee applies to homes located more than 500-feet from the closest fiber terminal).
Find more information in this “Universal Fiber-to-the-Home Broadband for Clarke” presentation that All Points shared with the Supervisors at their Aug. 31 special meeting.
Original source can be found here.
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