The Jackson County Economic Development Board (JCEDB), with help from Connect Ohio's technical outreach team, recently released a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the construction of a wireless broadband network throughout the county.
The RFP was a result of months of planning between JCEDB, Connect Ohio, Jackson County officials, municipalities and villages throughout the county, as well as the Jackson County Water Company. Connect Ohio was able to provide data collection, cost estimates, and propagation studies in order to create a customized business model for broadband expansion in the county, which is included in the RFP.
“The citizens of Jackson County have been well served by the level of effort and dedication of resources that went into this project,” said Bart Winegar, Connect Ohio technical outreach manager. “We are hopeful that the broadband provider community will recognize the full and unified support of the county to help them succeed.”
“Connect Ohio has been an invaluable partner in the RFP process,” said Sam Brady, Jackson County economic development specialist. “Their expertise has been a huge asset to Jackson County and its project partners.”
“This has been an ideal public/private partnership at all levels with JCEDB, Connect Ohio, and our local government partners,” said Jennifer Jacobs, Jackson County Economic Development Board executive director. “This project has displayed the very best of the cooperative spirit among our local leaders to move Jackson County ahead.”
JCEDB released the proposal in an effort to expand the access and availability of broadband Internet services to commercial, residential, and publicly owned locations in Jackson County. The Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP)-friendly RFP is an invitation to providers to bring broadband to the unserved and underserved residents and businesses of not only Jackson County, but neighboring counties, as well.
According to a statement from JCEDB, the top five most compelling reasons providers should consider responding to the RFP include:
• Single point of contact and low cost access to county-wide towers and water tanks
• Local marketing assistance and community cooperation
• Wireless propagation analysis
• Business case study
• Limited financial assistance to contribute to the project
The RFP is available for view by broadband providers at http://www.jcedb.com.
According to Connect Ohio’s 2008 Consumer Technology Assessment for Jackson County, 27% of households received broadband service to the home, significantly less than the state average at the time, which was 55%.* Additional Jackson County technology statistics can be found on Connect Ohio’s website or by visiting the following link: http://www.connectohio.org/mapping_and_research/county_profiles/jackson/.
*A 2011 Residential Technology Assessment for each county will be available later this year.
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