Remote customers get connected to broadband service
More than 25 new customers now have broadband service from Highland Communications in Anderson County.
Funding for the project comes from a grant by the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development.
Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank said that Highland Communications completed 41.68 miles of lines, passing 149 rooftops, which are in the area between Rocky Top and Oliver Springs.
The company connected 25 Anderson County customers as of Tuesday, Jan. 7, and was working on 23 more that week, weather permitting.
Frank said she had received an email from now-connected resident Jimmy Byrge.
She said the Highland Communications lines went through areas like Grave’s Gap, which include Braden Flats Road, Duncan Flats Road, and Brown Flats Lane.
It also includes Beech Grove, including Cameron Hollow Road, Cameron Hollow Lane and Beech Grove Road and a few smaller pockets on Seiber Mountain Road, Vowell Mountain Lane, Thistle Hollow Lane, and Briceville Highway from 2832 to 3095.
The funding, Frank said, came from the Tennessee Emergency Broadband Fund, which in turn uses money from the federal American Rescue Plan.
The county did not give any funds for this broadband project, but did enter into a 40-year lease agreement with Highland Communications for property owned by Anderson County in Rocky Top.
Comcast lines
Frank said Comcast plans to start its construction work in early spring.
The Courier News reported that company’s previous plan to start construction of its lines at River, Lovely Bluff, Savage Garden, Sequoyah, Beech Grove, Hinds Creek, Byrams Fork, Lone Mountain, Mt. Olive, Ridge Circle, and Mill Creek roads, and Stardust Marina.
However, Frank said Comcast had been busy fixing its infrastructure in areas that Hurricane Helene hit rather than working on new lines.
The same Tennessee Emergency Broadband Fund helped fund this project, but Anderson County agreed to spend $250,000 for the project.
Its funds also came from the American Rescue Plan.
Possible other lines
The County Commission approved $30,000 matching funds for yet a third broadband program connected to a grant at its Dec. 16 meeting.
“This has been a long time coming,” said Commissioner Tim Isbel at the December Operations Committee meeting regarding this project. “We’ve got two people from New River sitting there that can tell you the need of that [line] coming all the way over the mountain.”
This time, the grant was from the Broadband Equity, Accessibility and Deployment fund, another federal program that goes through the state of Tennessee. The company involved isn’t certain yet.
The agenda for the main County Commission meeting states the county lists a total of 1,178 “unserved and underserved” locations, although Frank said the National Telecommunications and Information Administration has yet to confirm them.
If it goes ahead, it might involve three areas of the county, and would cost up to $30,000 total, or $10,000 for each area, Frank said.
