LISBON - For those areas of Columbiana County without access to high-speed Internet, help may be on the way in the form of Gov. Ted Strickland's Connect Ohio initiative.
Gary Lambert, a regional field director for Connect Ohio, met Wednesday with county commissioners to begin the process for developing a plan to expand broadband service to all local residents and businesses.
According to an Associated Press story from last year, about 55 percent of Ohio homes have broadband, or high-speed Internet service, with access much higher in urban areas.
In contrast, fewer than 36 percent of residents in Ohio's Appalachian counties such as Columbiana County have broadband service. Although cost is often a factor in poorer, rural counties, access to broadband service is often limited because of geographic obstacles and the lack of population, which make it difficult for providers to justify the expense.
A map at Connect Ohio's Web site shows the following areas currently have access to broadband services: Salem, Washingtonville, Leetonia, Columbiana, New Waterford, Rogers, Lisbon, West Point, Glenmoor, East Liverpool, Calcutta, Salineville, Wellsville, Hanoverton, East Rochester, Homeworth, and Winona. High-speed Internet is largely unavailable in the rural township areas between these communities.
Connect Ohio is the nonprofit group hired by the state to work with each county and local Internet providers to come up with a plan to expand broadband access. Lambert said the first thing he needs is a list of local government, community and school leaders to form a working group to determine the county's broadband needs since some telephone, cable and satellite companies already offer high-speed Internet services. The information will be used to come up with a map outlining where broadband access is lacking and then, working with existing providers, come up with a plan to offer the service to these areas. He said the preliminary plan could be ready as soon as April.
County Port Authority Chief Executive Office Tracy Drake has been working for the past two years on a plan to extend high-speed Internet service to every corner of the county using existing fiber optic cable. Commissioners told Lambert that Drake should be one of the first people he contacts.
To make all of this happen, the state has committed $2.9 million to pay for Connect Ohio projects through mid-2010, and Strickland is counting on some of the federal stimulus money to help. Lambert estimates the average cost per Appalachian county will be $1.3 million.
Lambert said Connect Ohio's services are free, with state and federal money, including federal stimulus money sought to implement the plan, although counties could be asked to provide matching funds if required by the grant being sought. The money is to help existing Internet providers with the cost of extending broadband coverage to rural areas.
The goal is to be able to provide affordable access to broadband. Lambert said the statewide average for high-speed Internet is $35 per month, but a survey shows $29 is what people are willing to pay and that is what they are aiming for.
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