Vance County is among 17 counties that will benefit from a statewide initiative to increase broadband internet to rural communities.
Connect Holding II will receive about $41 million to provide high-speed internet access to 1,327 homes and businesses in Vance County, according to information Gov. Josh Stein’s office. That’s just over half of the county’s eligible locations, the April 15 press release noted.
“For rural communities like ours, access to high-speed internet is critical for economic development, telehealth and remote education opportunities,” N.C. District 32 Rep. Bryan Cohn said in a written statement in response to the announcement. “I am excited to see continued investments and appreciate this award from NCDIT. This will lead to better jobs, better education and better outcomes for our residents.”
“Connecting North Carolinians online helps strengthen our state,” Stein said. “Broadband plays a crucial role in our development, and I look forward to seeing how these funds expand economic opportunities for people in every corner of North Carolina.”
NCDIT Secretary and State Chief Information Officer Teena Piccione said the grants will fund projects that provide critical internet access to people in communities across the state.
“Internet access is a necessity in today’s world…We will continue to partner with counties and internet service providers to make more awards this month as we work to expand high-speed internet to every North Carolinian.”
The projects will be funded by more than $29 million from the federal American Rescue Plan awarded by NCDIT and nearly $12.5 million from selected broadband providers.
NCDIT partners with counties and internet providers to identify areas that need access partnership between counties and NCDIT to identify areas that need access, and then awardees must agree to provide high-speed service that reliably meets or exceeds speeds of 100 Mbps download and 100 Mbps upload.
This most recent wave of grant funding adds to the more than $547 million in Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology grants and previous projects that will connect more than 200,000 North Carolina households and businesses to high-speed internet.
