BOONE COUNTY, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Boone County Fiscal Court approved a partnership with Cincinnati Bell Inc. on March 23, 2021, that will result in the development of a one gigabit high-speed broadband fiber network available to every address in the county. This robust fiber network will be deployed within an accelerated 24-36 month time frame.
As access to reliable high speed internet has become an essential public service for residents and businesses to address work-from-home, virtual learning, telemedicine and many other essential daily activities, this partnership will ensure no areas of our county are left behind and will improve the quality of life for Boone County citizens now and into the future. The Boone County Fiscal Court’s commitment of $13.6 million will leverage a Cincinnati Bell investment of more than $30 million to implement the project.
The broadband expansion will place Boone County at the technological forefront as one of the very first county governments in the nation to deliver access to one gigabit high-speed broadband service to every address in its jurisdiction. A distinctive element of this project will include a last-mile, complete fiber build-out, capable of delivering speeds of one gigabyte. This access will be delivered via a state-of-the-art “Fiber to the Premise” network (FTTP).
“Delivering access for every address in the County to high-speed service is critical in creating a high quality of life environment and positioning our county as a community of choice for residents and businesses,” said Boone County Judge/Executive Gary Moore. “The partnership with Cincinnati Bell will leverage significant private capital investment that would not have been made without the commitment of the Fiscal Court, solidifying our position at the forefront of economic development, innovation and focusing on the needs of our citizens.”
Under terms of the partnership:
- Cincinnati Bell will expand its fiber network and offer one gigabit Internet service to every address in the county, expanding to more than 40,000 currently unserved and underserved business and consumer addresses. These consumer addresses will include both single-family residents as well as multi-dwelling units.
- The service will be delivered under a “Fiber First” strategy that is committed to utilizing a “Fiber to the Premise” network design, ostensibly installing fiber optic cable along every mile of road right-of way within Boone County. The fiber backbone will be designed to ensure capacity that will serve all future development, and technology upgrades.
- Cincinnati Bell will offer a Boone County Affinity Internet Package to every Boone County resident.
- UniCity, Cincinnati Bell’s Smart City organization, will fund $500,000 worth of improvements to Boone County’s public Wi-Fi infrastructure. UniCity works with communities to leverage technology applications that support business district vibrancy, neighborhood-based enhancements and public safety.
- Qualified K-12 students in Boone County will have access to discounted pricing programs for home-based internet as well as other subsidized broadband programs based on availability.
Cincinnati Bell has a long history and progressive experience in providing and managing large and complex wireline and wireless projects. As the leading supplier of fiber-based services in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, Cincinnati Bell has invested more than $1 billion since 2010 into building a fiber network across the region.
The Boone County initiative furthers the company’s goal to find creative solutions toward providing high-quality fiber connections to all, particularly with respect to those who are unserved and under-served.
“Internet connectivity is mission-critical to access jobs, educational opportunities, and health-care resources,” said Tom Simpson, Chief Operating Officer of Cincinnati Bell. “We are excited about this partnership with Boone County, and appreciate the Fiscal Court’s leadership in support of digital equity and equal access to high-speed broadband Internet.”
About Cincinnati Bell Inc.
With headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio, Cincinnati Bell Inc. (NYSE: CBB) delivers integrated communications solutions to residential and business customers over its fiber-optic and copper networks including high-speed internet, video, voice and data. Cincinnati Bell provides service in areas of Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Hawaii. In addition, enterprise customers across the United States and Canada rely on CBTS and OnX, wholly-owned subsidiaries, for efficient, scalable office communications systems and end-to-end IT solutions. For more information, please visit www.cincinnatibell.com. The information on the Company’s website is not incorporated by reference in this press release.
