Over the last few years, the cities of Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk and Virginia Beach have been collaborating to construct a regional fiber optic ring spanning more than 100 miles. The cities formed the Southside Network Authorityto oversee the project and share ownership.
The regional ring will provide high-speed broadband connectivity and also connect to the undersea transatlantic cables that come ashore in Virginia Beach. The multi-phase project will eventually extend to the Peninsula and has been touted as a tool to grow the regional economy by attracting new high-tech businesses and more Internet providers who can tap into the digital infrastructure.
Chesapeake officials say the city is the first to complete its portion of the regional ring, which spans along the northern part of Chesapeake to Portsmouth’s boundary. At a Chesapeake City Council meeting Tuesday, council members unanimously approved the sale and transfer of ownership of Chesapeake’s portion — which includes two 2-inch conduits — to the Southside Network Authority, which will reimburse the city about $1.7 million.
But as Chesapeake constructed its portion of the regional fiber ring, it also began work on its own broadband network that will improve Internet capabilities for more than 200 city offices, facilities and local schools — dubbed the Chesapeake Connects project. Chesapeake has completed the portion of Chesapeake Connects that runs parallel to the regional ring. The full network spanning more than 170 miles across the city is expected to be constructed by the end of the year.
Chesapeake Chief Information Officer Daniel Constantineau estimates that private Internet providers can begin tapping into Chesapeake Connects by the spring of 2027 to serve residents across the city, ultimately providing more Internet options.
Constantineau said co-building the infrastructure and beginning the process back in 2022 has helped keep costs lower than what it would be today, also saving time and effort for both the city and the Southside Network Authority.
Broadband connectivity became a priority for many cities across the nation at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, with many localities dedicating federal stimulus funds to various projects intended to expand high-speed Internet access to areas where it doesn’t exist. Chesapeake’s construction of the 18-mile portion of the regional ring as well as ongoing construction on the city-owned network costs an estimated $47 million, with about $38 million funded through the city’s share of American Rescue Plan Act funding.
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