Merit Network, Inc., began construction on more than 2,200 miles of fiber optic lines reaching across the state, connecting northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula to the rest of the state with high-speed Internet.
The construction was celebrated with a late December groundbreaking in Manistee, where the Reach Three MC Broadband Stimulus Project entered its first phase of construction. The project has been funded with federal stimulus money, the majority from two 2010 National Telecommunications and Information Administration grants to Merit so that they can build 2,287 miles of fiber-optic infrastructure through rural Michigan, connecting to national connection points in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
"Today is the culmination of a tremendous amount of hard work and collaboration between many key stakeholders in our state," says Merit President and CEO Don Welch at the groundbreaking. "Today shows that we are committed and well-positioned to achieve the goals of this project that the NTIA has entrusted Merit to accomplish."
The groundbreaking was held at the Manistee Intermediate School District, which was the first community institution to be connected to the network. Others that fall into that category, like state and local governments, colleges, schools, libraries, and health care facilities, will be able to connect to Merit's network at a lower cost.
This first phase of the construction is the creation of a 21-mile underground conduit from Manistee running north to Bear Lake, where it will connect with other REACH infrastructure.
The local work is being done by Earthcom, Inc., with other contractors working on the project in other locations.
"This one small project will add six new employees to our team. In addition it has created jobs for material providers, trucking companies, and the local area merchants," says Peter Bertsch, President and CEO of Earthcom, Inc. "It is a great feeling to know we will be a small part of Michigan's recovery."
Writer: Sam EgglestonSource: Don Welch, Merit Network
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