Broadband, high-speed Internet coming to a rural town near you

The Berkshires — Now that $19 million was released two weeks ago by Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker for broadband expansion into central and western Massachusetts, people are wondering just how far that money will go to create the infrastructure rural communities need to keep up with the world and make progress.

The $19 million comes out of the larger $50 million allocation by the Legislature earlier this year to string fiber optic cable through central and western Massachusetts –– what is known as “the last mile.” The Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) is the management entity that oversees broadband infrastructure expansion for the state, and is part of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, the mission of which is to expand technology for economic development.

“The governor thinks we’re ready to spend $19 million,” said Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli (D-Lenox). “Let’s start getting the work done.” He said it is time for Gov. Baker’s office “to light a fire under the MBI.”

It appears someone’s blowtorch either worked or may have been unnecessary; a few days after the funds were released the MBI sent a letter to the Selectboards of 22 (as of July 2) Western Massachusetts towns that voted in favor of building the infrastructure. In it, MBI Director Eric Nakajima said that “collectively we have a lot of work ahead of us” in the planning phase, and that the MBI will meet with each of the boards and is making an assistance planning grant available “for up to $5,000 of your town’s allocated funds…now available to obtain professional services to support planning or execution of last mile broadband decisions in your town.”

A legislative briefing with the MBI on July 8, Rep. Pignatelli said, will explore exactly how the $19 million will be used.

In a build out estimated to cost between $113 -$119 million over all –– of which the state will pony up roughly one-third –– that $19 million represents “a substantial down payment on the project,” Nakajima told The Edge, adding that the bulk of those funds will be used for planning, which will take a least one year. He said that exact costs of the project would become clearer as the planning and “make ready” work over the coming year progresses.

Here’s what will happen first. The MBI will organize with the towns, working out contracts and grant-making arrangements, while also beginning design work, Nakajima said.

“We’ve done preliminary design work on the network, but we need to move into finalizing designs in towns and engaging towns” as they move towards special town meetings to make decisions. The MBI will also work with WiredWest, a regional broadband planning organization that will become the operator of the community-owned network. WiredWest stepped in because the giant cable companies won’t provide rural service for lack of profit in towns with many miles of road and comparatively few customers.

Both the MBI and the towns will then coordinate with the utility companies and identify “who owns the [utility] poles that the fiber optic will be strung on,” Nakajima said. The cables, which can also carry phone and television, will be wired on utility poles along with the phone and electricity lines. This will involve pole surveys to assess poles for possible replacement or repair, or if any require changes to allow for the strongest broadband possible.

“It’s a relatively long process, but absolutely critical,” Nakajima added.

The planning and coordinating has already begun, he said, and the “make ready” work won’t likely begin until after January.

“We’re out and very visible in towns and working with them,” he said, though “we won’t see any given town fully lit up in the coming year.”

But towns that are “partially served” by cable may see “an expansion of service within the year,” Nakajima said, after Gov. Baker directed the MBI to help towns that “have substantial gaps in service because of how rural they are.”

An area is considered “un-served” if it has less than 25 megabits of speed available. The Federal Communication Commission’s (F.C.C.) definition of sufficient speed is 25 megabits or better, and higher speeds are necessary now as a result of the increased use of high bandwidth video applications like YouTube and Netflix.

Local business leaders, innovators, educators, and town and state officials, say that Broadband — also called high-speed, high-capacity Internet connectivity –– is deemed critical for the Berkshires economy to stay afloat and expand.

Broadband is considered so important that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted last month to subsidize it for low-income households after Chairman Tom Wheeler proposed it.

At an April economic forum hosted by The Edge, panelist Tim Newman, founding member of the Southern Berkshire Technology Committee and WiredWest, said that broadband technology “…is not a luxury anymore,” but “basic.”

The amount of a town’s bond for the project depends on the miles of roads and number of households in that town. In New Marlborough, for example, which has “lots of road miles,” Newman explained, “the project will cost a total of $4.7 million, with the state kicking in $1.7 million. “That means our taxpayers have to cover the remaining amount, about $3 million,” with a bond. The property tax increase as a result would be $50 per $100,000 of assessed property valuation. For a home assessed at $300,000, that’s $150 per year.

Despite a projected hike in taxes, towns have been voting overwhelmingly in favor of getting these cables strung.

WiredWest’s website says that the “co-op has now received over 6,700 deposits for service, representing a third of potential subscribers, and 15 towns have more than 40 percent of premises subscribed.” Tallies for each town can be seen here.

Tim Newman was thrilled by all the votes and the swift action by the MBI. He said he “hoped that the rest of us will get on board one way or another,” in upcoming special town meetings. He said the MBI must have been impressed with the commitment by so many towns. “We’re way past the threshold of whether this is financially viable.”

“Finally, after many years of planning and talk…we’re coming into the home stretch,” Newman added. “There was no law that said this had to end in success, there could have been a stalemate.”

Rep. Pignatelli was equally pleased. “It’s been too long now,” he said. “And I’m very impatient. I don’t want to wait any longer.”