BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. (828newsNOW) — More funding for a state program will bring high-speed internet to more areas of Buncombe County.
According to a news release from Buncombe County officials, the N.C. Department of Information Technology’s (NCDIT) Division of Broadband and Digital Equity recently announced an additional $112 million in Completing Access to Broadband program projects across North Carolina to connect 25,903 households and businesses in 19 counties to high-speed internet.
A collaboration between counties and NCDIT identifies areas that need access while soliciting proposals from prequalified internet service providers. In Buncombe County, Bellsouth Telecommunications, LLC (AT&T North Carolina) was selected, and this award will provide high-speed internet access to 967 locations. The total project cost is $10,301,468.00 with a county match of $3,605,513.80, coming from American Rescue Plan Act funding.
The county says awardees must agree to provide high-speed service that reliably meets or exceeds speeds of 100 Mbps download and 100 Mbps upload.
“With this fiber internet project, it will be life-changing for the people and businesses in the Broad River, Fairview, Candler, and Newfound communities who will now finally have access to high-speed internet,” District 1 Commissioner Terri Wells said in the press release. “This will broaden their economic, education, and healthcare access opportunities. I have witnessed these positive impacts across our county as we continue to invest in high-speed broadband infrastructure.”
The proposal map includes areas in Southeast Buncombe (Broad River), Upper Hominy and Fairview.
“We are pleased that this proposal covered a lot of our eligible locations (40% of the county’s 2,394 eligible locations), and staff will next set their sights on more state funding,” Assistant County Manager Tim Love said in a press release.
The county says it has partnered with the state of North Carolina and other providers since 2020 on three grant projects to bring high-speed internet service to more than 2,600 unserved households.