Broadband expansion benefits 3 rural towns

SHANDAKEN, N.Y. >> Some businesses and homes in the towns of Shandaken, Hardenburgh and Pine Plains will have access to highspeed broadband for the first time thanks, in part, to state grants.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Tuesday announced $1.3 million in New NY Broadband Program Round II grants that were awarded to five projects in the Mid-Hudson region. In a press release, the governor said the awards will provide 369 homes and businesses with access to highspeed broadband for the first time while leveraging $429,980 in private matching funds.

Through the awards, projects in Shandaken will receive $173,309 in state grants, leading to an overall total investment of $247,551.

Projects in the town of Hardenburgh will receive $373,983 in state grants, for a total investment of $534,189; while those in Pine Plains will receive $202,781 in state grants, for a total investment of $253,463.

Through Rounds I and II, the state program has driven more than $2.1 million in public-private investments in high-speed broadband across the Mid-Hudson region. Since the program’s launch, Cuomo has secured upgrades statewide for more than 2.3 million homes, businesses and institutions, according to the press release.

“Broadband is today what electricity was nearly a century ago — essential to creating economic opportunity, driving innovation and an absolute necessity for our way of life,” Cuomo said in the release. “These awards will provide homes and businesses with access to the high-speed internet required to participate and succeed in the modern economy, and are a major step toward broadband for all in New York.”

The five awarded projects span three counties in the Mid-Hudson region and address both unserved and underserved areas, the release said. The awarded projects include seven businesses and community anchor institutions like government buildings and schools.

In total, nearly 18 miles of broadband infrastructure will be created in the region, the release said.