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CONCERTED EFFORTS OF LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS PAVE THE WAY FOR BROADBAND
GREAT BARRINGTON, MA: March 11, 2009 Two local organizations – The Southern Berkshire Technology Committee (SBTC) and the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC) – have teamed up to expedite the build-out of high-bandwidth broadband internet to South Berkshire communities who have partial or no access. The SBTC’s recent application to the BRPC was granted for District Local Technical Assistance support, which will help the Committee’s planning efforts for fiber-optic-based broadband service within the SBTC’s 11 member towns.
“This is wonderful news for the unserved as well as the underserved [by broadband] communities throughout the Southern Berkshires. This shows that when towns collaborate for a common cause, good things can happen,” said State Representative, Smitty Pignatelli.
What the support entails is the generation of a planning maps; assistance with negotiations with providers in the 11 member towns; and assessment of regulatory impediments to broadband expansion. “Before fiber can be hung on the poles, there is significant engineering and negotiation that has to happen,” said Charles Flynn, Chairman of the SBTC, “and the support from the BRPC leverages their resources and expertise to solve issues which could otherwise be costly and time consuming.”
The Berkshire Regional Planning Commission believes the construction of a fiber-based broadband infrastructure “represents a strong regional strategy to support rural economic opportunities and quality of life and communications in the region,” according to BRPC Executive Director, Nathaniel Karns.
That belief has been echoed in many local, state and national conversations, particularly in the past year. Numerous studies have demonstrated positive linkages between broadband availability and economic indicators – including the rates of business formation and job growth – as well as property values. And broadband is now critical to the location decisions of most firms and many families. “Broadband is an essential resource in today’s world and economy,“ said Governor Deval Patrick, in August of 2008, as he signed into law “An Act Establishing and Funding the Massachusetts Broadband Institute” – legislation that leverages public and private resources to make high-speed Internet available in the state’s 32 communities that currently lack any access
to broadband.
However, the new law calls for the expansion to be completed within the next three years. To most, that wait seems unacceptable. “Our people, our businesses and our students are disadvantaged every day they don’t have broadband, so we’re trying to get a robust technology up and running as quickly as possible,” says Tony Blair, member of and legal adviser to the SBTC. “We realized there was preparatory work to be done before the build-out could start, and if we could do it, we could potentially get broadband here faster.”
About the Southern Berkshire Technology Committee
The Southern Berkshire Technology Committee comprises representatives from the Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce and 11 South Berkshire towns: Alford, Becket, Great Barrington, Egremont, Monterey, Mt. Washington, New Marlborough, Otis, Sandisfield, Sheffield, and Tyringham. The group’s mission is to facilitate the deployment of modern broadband infrastructure and services to the rural communities of the region. The members of the Committee represent a cross-section of our communities: technology experts, professionals, educators, small business owners, retirees, parents, and concerned citizens. For more information, please refer to www.southberkshiretech.org or contact Charles Flynn at 413-528-1792 or cflynn@lee.k12.ma.us.
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