By Aila Boyd
The Botetourt County Board of Supervisors voted at its June 25 meeting to authorize the county administrator to enter into an interim agreement with Lumos Networks for the development of a detailed design and deployment plan for a fiber-to-the-home solution for unserved areas west and south of Buchanan.
The interim agreement comes after the county issued a public-private solicitation advertisement on April 4 to address unplanned and unserved areas.
Following a review of the submitted proposals that were received on May 21, the Botetourt County Broadband Commission interviewed Lumos Networks on June 14. Those present for the interview included Dr. Mac Scothorn, who serves as the chairman of the Broadband Commission and vice chairman of the Board of Supervisors; Joyce Kessinger, a member of the Botetourt County Economic Development Authority;Gary Larrowe, the county administrator; Walter Grigg, a member of the Broadband Commission and employee of Lawrence Companies; Ken McFadyen, director of economic development for the county; Sandie Terry, a rural broadband consultant that the county hired, and Lumos Networks representatives David Smith and Rob Cale. Scothorn described the meeting with Lumos Networks as being “great,” adding that the company representatives “really opened up.”
He went on to say, “This is going to be huge.”
The design phase will target 645 locations including 43 businesses. The areas included in the proposal submitted by Lumos Networks represent what was designated as “Phase Two” in a six-phase plan that Terry created for the county, which was presented at a Broadband Commission meeting on January 25.
The areas west of Buchanan that will be addressed include Springwood Road to Route 11, Oak Ridge Road to north of Narrow Passage, Lake Catherine Road, Rose Ridge Lane, Pipers Lane and Blake Road. The areas south of Buchanan that will be addressed include east of Lee Highway from Back Creek Lane to and including Lithia Road to Fringer Trail, including Hardbarger Road.
It should be noted that a small portion of “Phase Two” from Terry’s plan might not be included in the agreement. Because of the possibility that it might be excluded, Scothorn noted that funding from the Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) could help resolve the problem concerning the unplanned coverage area.
Following the review of the design and deployment plan, the Broadband Commission will review both and negotiate with Lumos Networks. If the negotiations are successful, the Broadband Commission will make a recommendation to proceed to the Board of Supervisors later in the summer.
Lumos Networks is a subsidiary of Segra, a company with a fiber network that covers over 21,000 miles throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.
During the Board of Supervisors meeting, Scothorn explained that the Broadband Commission’s efforts to expand fiber to all parts of the county will likely take until 2023 to be fully realized.
