Project links La Pine, Madras, Prineville and Sunriver with the rest of Central Oregon.
BendBroadband successfully completed the first Broadband Technology Opportunities Project (BTOP) in Central Oregon. The company applied for a grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2010; the grant request required the installation of a 132 mile fiber optic ring which the infrastructure needs for health, education, public safety and business.
The initial grant was $6.3 million, of which BendBroadband used $1.9 million to complete the project. It was designed to provide high-speed connections from 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps to 25 community anchor institutions and to build direct fiber connections to area business parks and districts.
Once the grant was awarded it led to the formation of the Central Oregon Fiber Alliance (COFA) that created a partnership with the four local communities as well as important educational, business and public safety groups. COFA’s goals are to create a comprehensive, regional 40 Gbps fiber ring and bring broadband connectivity to more regions of Central Oregon, helping local businesses and providing a boost to the economy.
The completion of this project marks a turning point for the public and businesses in the region. “It’s all about access to technology in today’s business environment,” explained Roger Lee of Economic Development for Central Oregon. “If fiber capacity is offered in our rural areas, cities like Prineville, Madras and LaPine will have a better chance retaining and creating family-wage jobs.”
Creating jobs is always good news in Central Oregon and BendBroadband reported the creation of approximately 75 jobs during construction and an estimated 115 permanent jobs as a result of the improved regional connectivity.
While the fiber optic technology encourages business growth, Shirley Metcalf, dean of extended learning at COCC says, “The completion of BTOP means schools will now have the connectivity and technology to help train Central Oregon’s future workforce.”
Metcalf adds, “The high-speed internet connection through BendBroadband and the BTOP grant have made it possible for us to offer so much more for students at our new campuses in Madras and Prineville…While we can offer the face-to-face instruction, we could not provide the full complement of educational services nor the depth of learning resources without this important infrastructure.”
With the installation part of the fiber optic project now completed, BendBroadband is using a multi-tired approach to implementing the high speed service to the public and business.
Stephanie Senner, director of business to business marketing for BendBroadband says,“Right now, we’re focused on leveraging the recently completed fiber expansion to ensure that businesses throughout Central Oregon have access to the fastest, most reliable fiber optic ring possible. We’re also forming an advisory board of business customers to help us develop and test new services and technologies.
“On the customer advisory board front, we’re looking for businesses with unique needs or those with strong passion for technology investment to help us research, develop and beta test new business services. We want to ensure that we’re not only keeping pace with modern technology, but the unique needs of Central Oregon’s economy and business community.
BendBroadband is a family-owned, Oregon-based company serving Central Oregon since 1955. The company offers an extensive range of fiber, broadband, cable and telephone services for commercial and residential customers. www.BendBroadband.com.
