The funds, part of the $6 million broadband fund awarded to the North Country Regional Economic Development Council, are for a public/private partnership between the state, Slic Network Solutions and Older Adults Technology Services, a press release from the Governor's Office said.
Jeff Yette, a sales engineer with Slic, said in the tri-county area, the Bellmont South Next Generation Broadband project and the Newcomb Next Generation Broadband project are to receive $1.1 million each, while the Minerva Next Generation Broadband project is to receive $1.5 million.
"It is good news that it (grant funding) is coming," he told the Press-Republican.
'SLOW PROCESS'
In the Town of Bellmont, it is intended to fund construction of 34.4 miles of fiber-optic line that will pass by 555 possible connection sites.The money will pay for 38.6 miles of line in the Town of Newcomb that could serve 511 locations, while in the Town of Minerva, it would go for 64.5 miles and reach as many as 698 customers.
Slic has already been awarded grant funds for other broadband expansion projects in the tri-county area, including an earlier project in Bellmont, as well as those in Lyon Mountain, Schroon Lake and North Hudson.
Yette said through those projects, they have learned it can take two years or more to get the final approval before construction can start.
They just recently submitted the final paperwork for the Bellmont North project, he said, 18 months after the grant was announced and seven months after the funds were released.
"We now have a better understanding of the process to get final approval," Yette said.
UNDERSERVED SENIORS
The announcement by Gov. Andrew Cuomo also includes $3.7 million for Older Adults Technology Services, a nonprofit based in New York City that helps older adults access and use modern technology.That funding will help Older Adults Technology build a broadband adoption system for older residents of the North Country, which can be used to supplement Slic's expansion efforts.
“High-speed Internet represents reliable communication and access to information, but the reality is that many New Yorkers still remain without access to this important resource,” Cuomo said in a press release.
“By expanding broadband services in the North Country, we can create a better living situation for underserved seniors throughout the region and ensure that residents are better connected with their communities.”
'MORE TO DO'
Empire State Development President and CEO Kenneth Adams said the Connect NY grants are providing businesses, schools and communities with critical access to high-speed broadband, which is designed to attract economic-development investments and improve the quality of public education across New York state"The $9 million announced today will help more than 130 businesses expand their reach to consumers in other counties and countries while also connecting thousands of unserved North Country residents to the services so many of us already enjoy,” he said.
North Country Chamber of Commerce President Garry Douglas said that while everyone was talking about the need for broadband in the North Country four years ago, "no one was really providing the public-private investment needed to close the enormous digital divide we faced, especially in the Adirondacks.
"Then Gov. Cuomo allowed us to identify our own regional priorities and promised the state would join in prioritizing what we identified," he said.
"Broadband was at the top of that list, and the state has been true to its word, funding a number of projects which have greatly expanded access across the region, with now these additional commitments continuing to bridge remaining gaps," he said.
"There is more to do, but these projects are the next important step."
©2014 the Press-Republican (Plattsburgh, N.Y.)
