Amador County – The Amador County Board of Supervisors formally expressed support on Tuesday for one of three developing plans aimed at expanding broadband internet service in the Central Valley and Sierra foothills. The Central Valley Next Generation Broadband Plan, as proposed by the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC), would encompass a service area of 18 counties, or 24 percent of the state’s geography. Frank Leschinsky, Public Sector Manager for Volcano Communications Group, said his and other companies in the partnership aim to extend existing fiber optic broadband cables from the Central Valley to both the Amador County Office of Education and the County Library. “The FCC is developing new broadband plans. It is essential to this county and other counties that high capacity infrastructure is built to support this demand,” said Leschinsky. The CENIC plan differs from two similar proposals presented in recent weeks by Mother Lode Internet and the Central Sierra Economic Development District. All three plans aim to secure a piece of the $7.2 billion in federal stimulus funds dedicated to broadband expansion. The Supervisors have made clear that they will not support any project over another. “The best case scenario is that all three projects are funded, encouraging competition and driving costs down,” said Supervisor John Plasse. Supervisor Ted Novelli noted that any project will generate much-needed local jobs. Leschinsky assured Supervisors that the various project backers consider “all projects as complimentary, not competing.” Once the awarded broadband project is completed, numerous internet service providers will be able tap in to the network and then expand service to more rural areas of the county using various modes of transmission. Leschinsky said the educational broadband network provided through CENIC also would allow for greater interconnectivity between educational institutions. He said professors from major schools like UC Berkeley could one day be transmitting lectures online to students at a future Community College in our area. The board unanimously approved to draft a letter of support for the CENIC project. Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the board approved the final draft of a letter of support for a plan proposed by Mother Lode Internet. That support letter was tabled at the previous meeting in order to make language changes. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Wednesday, 17 March 2010 02:02
Supervisors Support Another Developing Broadband Expansion Plan
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Amador County – The Amador County Board of Supervisors formally expressed support on Tuesday for one of three developing plans aimed at expanding broadband internet service in the Central Valley and Sierra foothills. The Central Valley Next Generation Broadband Plan, as proposed by the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC), would encompass a service area of 18 counties, or 24 percent of the state’s geography. Frank Leschinsky, Public Sector Manager for Volcano Communications Group, said his and other companies in the partnership aim to extend existing fiber optic broadband cables from the Central Valley to both the Amador County Office of Education and the County Library. “The FCC is developing new broadband plans. It is essential to this county and other counties that high capacity infrastructure is built to support this demand,” said Leschinsky. The CENIC plan differs from two similar proposals presented in recent weeks by Mother Lode Internet and the Central Sierra Economic Development District. All three plans aim to secure a piece of the $7.2 billion in federal stimulus funds dedicated to broadband expansion. The Supervisors have made clear that they will not support any project over another. “The best case scenario is that all three projects are funded, encouraging competition and driving costs down,” said Supervisor John Plasse. Supervisor Ted Novelli noted that any project will generate much-needed local jobs. Leschinsky assured Supervisors that the various project backers consider “all projects as complimentary, not competing.” Once the awarded broadband project is completed, numerous internet service providers will be able tap in to the network and then expand service to more rural areas of the county using various modes of transmission. Leschinsky said the educational broadband network provided through CENIC also would allow for greater interconnectivity between educational institutions. He said professors from major schools like UC Berkeley could one day be transmitting lectures online to students at a future Community College in our area. The board unanimously approved to draft a letter of support for the CENIC project. Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the board approved the final draft of a letter of support for a plan proposed by Mother Lode Internet. That support letter was tabled at the previous meeting in order to make language changes. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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