February 2017

Towns Express Overwhelming Support for WiredWest and WG&E at MBI PP Open Meeting

2019-10-21T20:41:03-04:00February 26th, 2017|News, Stories, Notes From the Underserved, Get the Latest Info|

On February, 16, 2017 the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) held an open meeting to hear from MBI town designees and local Select board members about their thoughts regarding the results of the Private Provider RFP. The meeting took place at the Worthington, Massachusetts Town Hall. Select board members and designees wishing to speak were asked [...]

Back regional broadband, towns tell MBI panel

2019-10-21T20:41:03-04:00February 17th, 2017|News, Top Stories, Get the Latest Info|

By Larry Parnass, Reprinted from The Berkshire Eagle WORTHINGTON — Broadband advocates from Berkshire County and beyond pressed Thursday for the Massachusetts Broadband Institute to free up funding, speed decision-making and support regional solutions to a problem they say impairs civic life. Their sometimes sharply worded remarks took frequent aim at the MBI itself, saying [...]

January 2017

WiredWest Offers New Proposal For Western Mass. Broadband

2017-02-28T23:58:23-05:00January 31st, 2017|News, Top Stories, Get the Latest Info|

By JIM LEVULIS, WAMC - Original post on WAMC.org http://cpa.ds.npr.org/wamc/audio/2017/01/wiredwestweb.mp3 Efforts to bring broadband internet to underserved areas of rural, western Massachusetts have been ongoing for more than a decade. Now the regional cooperative WiredWest has a new proposal. It comes after Governor Charlie Baker’s administration shook up and reviewed the efforts of the [...]

WiredWest offers broadband operations

2019-10-21T20:41:03-04:00January 28th, 2017|News, Top Stories, Get the Latest Info|

by Larry Parnass - The Berkshire Eagle Read full story NORTHAMPTON — Rather than build and run a sprawling regional broadband system, a nonprofit cooperative now seeks to fill a narrower but critical role for towns fighting to obtain fast internet connections. WiredWest leaders made this case Saturday to municipal officials from across Western Massachusetts: [...]

MBI’s MB123 Middle Mile and Why it is a Hindrance to a Regional Broadband Network

2019-10-21T20:41:03-04:00January 23rd, 2017|Get the Latest Info, News|

Published as a My Turn article in the Greenfield : The Greenfield Recorder, David Dvore, My Turn/Dvore: Where is the broadband?, January 23, 2017 What happens when you put lawyers and politicians in charge of a project that requires business and technical expertise? MBI, Massachusetts Broadband Institute, was created in 2008 by emergency legislation that allocated [...]

December 2016

The State Should Work with WiredWest on a Regional Plan

2019-10-21T20:41:04-04:00December 6th, 2016|Notes From the Underserved, Get the Latest Info|

MBI was initially funded and created by emergency legistlation in 2008 with a mandate to bring broadband internet service to all 45 unserved communities. Instead, they spent $80M building the MB123 middle mile to 123 communities which they claimed would attract private companies to finish the last mile. It never did and now is a hindrance to [...]

October 2016

Broadband effort gets back on track

2019-10-21T20:41:04-04:00October 16th, 2016|Notes From the Underserved|

By Steve Nelson (reprinted from Berkshire Eagle, Broadband effort gets back on track, October 12, 2016 ) You will soon see work crews standing around utility poles, gazing upward. They'll not only be checking the cables on those poles, but looking as well toward the future of broadband in western Massachusetts. The long-awaited project to bring high-speed internet [...]

1Berkshire Finalist Award

2019-10-21T20:41:04-04:00October 2nd, 2016|News, Documents, Get the Latest Info|

An anonymous admirer of WiredWest nominated us for the 2016 1Berkshire award for Growing/Advancing the Berkshire Economy. We made it to the finals.  WiredWest didn't win, but we were one of 5 finalists. Steve Nelson attended the ceremony to receive the award on behalf on WiredWest. An unexpected recognition of our work.

September 2016

WiredWest Operations and Maintenance RFI

2020-08-30T15:17:58-04:00September 1st, 2016|News, Archived Documents|

As part of its revised Regional Operational Plan, WiredWest will arrange for all services, such as Network operations, Customer Service, Billing, Technical Support, Line Maintenance, etc. on behalf of member towns. Consolidating these services regionally reduces the burden for the towns and lowers costs to customers as described in WiredWest's comprehensive analysis on the benefits of regionalization. WiredWest has released a Request [...]

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