It’s been a productive month for regional last-mile planning, and we’re pleased to report that meaningful progress is being made. WiredWest has recently had several meetings with the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) and we have collectively agreed to convene in working groups on a regular schedule to accelerate planning and deployment. This will put us on track to meet with town Select Boards this fall to provide updates and relay more details on town financial participation.

Of special mention was a meeting yesterday at the State House, hosted by Senator Stan Rosenberg and the Western Massachusetts Legislative Delegation, to discuss cooperative planning efforts on a last-mile solution. The meeting culminated in the Legislative Delegation issuing a joint statement announcing the collaboration on last-mile efforts between WiredWest, the MBI, and Franklin Regional Council of Governments.

We believe that each organization in this new partnership brings critical strengths to the planning and deployment of last-mile broadband in our region, and by working cooperatively, we can expedite the timeline for our unserved communities to get robust, affordable broadband access and join the 21st century.

For more information on WiredWest’s recent work, please refer to our Project Updates here.