Broadband to expand locally

By Tami Stevenson

Live Oak, Madison, Lee and Perry are among eight Florida communities Governor Ron DeSantis awarded broadband expansion funds to, Monday, April 10, 2023. Live Oak, Madison and Perry seemed to have been awarded the lion’s share, receiving $5,000,000 each of the $22M project.    

“Investing in reliable internet infrastructure strengthens local economies and opens up new opportunities for students, businesses and families,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “I am happy to award this $22M to support Florida’s small and rural communities and I look forward to making more awards in the future that expand internet access to all Floridians.”      

Administered by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), the Broadband Opportunity Program funds the installation and deployment of broadband internet infrastructure in unserved Florida communities, providing valuable access to telehealth, economic, educational, and workforce development opportunities to offer a brighter future for all Floridians.The following projects will be awarded through the Broadband Opportunity Program:

City of Live Oak ($5,000,000) — to add 821 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 21,492 unserved locations within Suwannee County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1 gigabits per second (GB). 

City of Madison and Town of Lee ($5,000,000) — to add 759 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 1,835 unserved locations within Madison County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

Cities of Monticello and Perry; Unincorporated Lamont and Wacissa ($5,000,000) — to add 946 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 2,528 unserved locations within Jefferson, Madison and Taylor counties with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

Unincorporated Allentown and Wallace; Chumukla and Pace ($3,353,384) — to add 357 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 2,355 unserved locations within Santa Rosa County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

City of Plant City; Unincorporated Balm, Keysville, Lithia and Wimauma ($906,000) — to add 122.8 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 1,792 unserved locations within Hillsborough County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

City of Laurel Hill, Unincorporated Deerland and Svea, and Unincorporated Okaloosa County ($853,000) — to add 103.5 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 831 unserved locations within Okaloosa County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

City of San Antonio, Land O Lakes and Shady Hills, and Unincorporated Pasco County ($2,003,815) — to add 171.1 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 1,545 unserved locations within Pasco County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

City of Dade City, Crystal Springs, Dade City North, Lacoochee, Richland, Zephyrhills North, Zephyrhills South, and Unincorporated Pasco County ($578,531) — to add 171.4 miles of fiber optic cable to their existing network to provide 911 unserved locations within Pasco County with symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1GB. 

For additional information about the Office of Broadband and its initiatives, please visit www.FloridaJobs.org/Broadband.