Centre County seeks to expand rural broadband

BELLEFONTE -- In an effort to bridge the digital divide, Centre County is seeking proposals from internet service providers to expand high-speed broadband access to the thousands of unserved and underserved addresses in the county.

In anticipation of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's rollout of the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program, which will provide billions in funding to expand internet connectivity, Elizabeth Tuck-Lose, Centre County's assistant planning director, presented county commissioners a request for proposals to proactively identify potential project areas with internet providers.

A study released in January 2023, conducted by engineering and energy consulting firm Columbia Telecommunications Corporation on behalf of the Centre County Planning and Community Development Office, identified 7,900 addresses with inadequate access to wireline broadband -- 4,300 of which are concentrated in identifiable, contiguous, sparsely populated rural areas and geographically isolated clusters, largely concentrated in the northern, midwestern and eastern parts of the county.

These dead zones typically remain disconnected because internet service providers deem the low household density as insufficient to justify the investment or because logistical challenges make construction costs prohibitive.

An additional 3,600 addresses in Centre County are served by existing cable infrastructure that, based on reported complaints and speed survey results, appears outdated and over-burdened according to Columbia Telecommunications Corporation's report.

The Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority is set to meet on Oct. 10, and Tuck-Lose says her office anticipates they will fully roll out their timeline for BEAD Program funding.

The request for proposals (RFP), unanimously approved by the commissioners, was released Tuesday to get out ahead of that announcement and competing counties. Contractors will have until Oct. 11 at 5 p.m. to ask questions of the county, and until Jan. 3, 2025, at 5 p.m. to submit their proposals.

"(The delay is) by design to allow a company that wants to respond to Centre County's RFP adequate time," said Tuck-Lose. "Once the application for BEAD opens, it is going to be moving pretty fast for these companies, so we want to give them some courtesy leeway to make a response."

The selection of projects is slated for Jan. 21, 2025.

Commissioner Mark Higgins reminded internet service providers that the Board of Commissioners has reserved up to $1 million in American Rescue Plan funds for local matching. While the BEAD program typically requires a 25 percent county match, Tuck-Lose noted that more expensive projects may qualify for reduced match requirements.

The RFP is a revised version of the one issued last spring during broadband expansions funded by the Capital Projects Fund.

According to the assistant director, the county received eight proposals from that RFP, and she is optimistic that they'll receive a similarly qualified pool of applicants.

Last year's RFP saw two internet service providers bring four broadband projects to life.

"Now, under BEAD, there are going to be a lot of different, smaller pockets that are going to have to be served, and the money is there to fund these projects. So, if we could have three or four projects advanced again in Centre County, I would certainly recommend those to the Authority," Tuck-Lose said.

The Centre County Broadband Strategic Plan, developed by CTC Technology, identified three zones as the most suitable for broadband investment.

Zone 1, covering the southeastern part of the county, includes 2,100 locations without adequate internet access. CTC deemed this the easiest unserved area to connect ahead of BEAD funding due to its higher density of unserved locations.

Zone 2 spans central parts of the county, where nearby telecommunications infrastructure can be leveraged to extend connectivity to 4,500 locations in need of service.

For Zone 3, in the northern and western regions, the firm advised waiting for BEAD funding, as its low population density and rugged terrain make it the most expensive of the three to address.

Tuck-Lose said, "Most of us have been waiting for the BEAD Program to open up to really get to the deployment of projects in these different zones."

When selecting projects, the Planning and Community Development Office will seek to align the county's investment zones from its strategic plan with the mapping conducted by the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority and the areas designated for BEAD funding.

The office will evaluate technical requirements including the comprehensiveness of the proposal, the nature of the technical solution (wired, wireless, etc.), affordability for low-income households, operational experience, financial viability and the cost per household for broadband hookups to make their decision.

Commissioner Amber Concepcion expressed her satisfaction before voting to approve the request, stating, "I am just glad to see this moving along finally. It has been a long wait for this opportunity, so I'm pleased we're poised and ready, with the data necessary to put together some competitive proposals."