New Kent Board of Supervisors receive update on possible Internet solutions

By Robb Johnson | June 26, 2021 3:01 pm

New Kent’s Board of Supervisors held a special work session with RiverStreet Networks for an update on future broadband services within the county.

The June 24 meeting was a follow up of the April 28 work session that gave county leaders a first glance of the requirements to bring Internet to the county. Currently, RiverStreet Networks has assisted with nearby King & Queen County’s development of a plan.

According to the company’s presentation, the expansion plan would take place in three separate sections to coincide with fiber distribution. The scheduled fiber would allow for high-speed internet and would provide a backbone of 66.77 miles. The first phase would connect passings, better known as connectivity availability, for 269 homes. RiverStreet said that homes could connect to the backbone for services at a minimum of 1,200 feet to as much as 2,000 feet.

The company also commented that an additional 561 miles of cable would allow passings to 11,143 homes. The cost for that would be approximately $20 million without connecting customers, with an additional $7 million added if customers are connected. To connect the 11,412 homes in the county and reach the 100 percent completion rate, the total cost of the project would cost $49,924,634.98. That entire cost would not fall entirely on the county’s dime.

RiverStreet followed up with a projection on wireless Internet. According to the company, 60-foot towers would be needed to be implemented at 21 locations across the county. County Administrator Rodney Hathaway interjected, saying that county ordinances would need to be researched as current zoning audiences only offer a 50-foot tower for antennas and wireless communication. District 1 Supervisor and board chairman Thomas Evelyn responded quickly to the numbers.

“To me, this does not sound feasible,” he said. “I can see it’s going to cost seven million and nobody is going to put no 60-foot antenna near a house.”

Total expected cost of the wireless project would be approximately $7,557,328. Another $4,430,199 would be needed to factor in the construction and location for the towers.

County staff will issue an RFP for possible bids on both projects. RiverStreet is expected to provide an update on the project within the upcoming weeks.