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I realize that faster internet service will be a boon to the area, However, it has not happened via the private sector because it was not cost effective. Will it be cost effective when financed by the taxpayer? How about a user fee user fee on the service until the "loan" can be paid back to the taxpayers. That way the region gets serviced and the taxpayers are not left holding the bag for the few. I am sure that to be able to benefit from this new faster service, the users would be happy to "pay back" the taxpayers who made it possible.
Does anyone at the State or Federal level ever think in terms of who is going to pay for things?
"The service area contains more than one million residents, over 44,000 businesses, at least 2,100 community anchor institutions (CAI), and 3,429 square miles. The middle-mile network will be within three miles of more than 98 percent of households, CAIs, and businesses. This will dramatically change the cost equation and service options for last-mile providers and allow for competitively priced residential and business-class broadband services."
Does this mean that private business will now be able to service customers they would not have been able to before for cost reasons?
Does this mean that we have now subsidized these "private" companies to the tune of millions of dollars to run a high speed line closer to the servicing area.
These companies should at least be made to pay laying of these High Speed lines. I know they will only pass the cost onto customers, but the customers should be happy that they can finally get High Speed Internet at a premium price for sure, but at least it would then be available as a choice.
Editor: The initiative is the same thinking that produced programs like the Rural Electrification and the federal and state highway systems. Those programs greatly aided businesses as well as citizens. The problem in rural communities is that the big carriers (DSL, cable) are not willing to invest millions because the return isn't big enough. Like electrification, the government is providing the main investment for communities to plug into - residents and businesses alike. Check out WiredWest for more information.
Abigail, you realize that you--and everyone else--most certainly HAVE asked for AND received governemnt monies, right? Lots of them.
Unless you're the rare person who doesn't use any of the following: highways, airports, cellular communications, and the internet. Or how about the "government monies" you get in the form of interest deductions and tax benefits for things like mortgages, capital gains, etc?
Or locally, things like snow plowing, court systems, enforcement of parking, zoning, or other ordinanaces. Fire protection. A prison to hold people who have broken criminal laws. Hospitals. Safe drinking water. Regulation of pollution.
Yea, I'm sure you never asked for or used any of that stuff.
You are right though, that stuff is "part of capitalism." It's the part that free-marketeers like to pretend doesn't exist.
Editor: I agree with Publius. Abigail's argument is she already has a road to her door, so why should she have to subsidize roads to other people's doors? iBerkshires, obviously, pays for broadband. We are situated in North Adams so have access to it. People on Florida Mountain would love to pay for broadband, too, but no one will offer it to them. This investment will build a road to Florida so they can pay to have it come to their doors.
Welcome to the 21st century Western Mass!! Nobody bats an eye when roads, bridges, and highways are built with tax dollars.
Fasten your seat belts and prepare for a ride on the information super-highway. In our increasingly wired (commerce) world information exchange becomes a requirement for participation in the new economy.
This is the type of infrastructure improvements that will yield many times the benefits of the initial costs.
This is a wise, far sighted, and proper use of tax dollars.
I find it ironic that some residents of densely populated eastern MA protest about the broadband initiative grant, when for years their auto insurance rates were heavily subsidized by drivers in Western MA under the state's former auto insurance rate formulas.
Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents
By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.
More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.
Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.
One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly.
"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."
Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.
Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.
One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly.
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This spring weekend, there are a variety of events in and around the Berkshires, including Spring Celebrations, music, cleanups, and more.
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More than 300 students from area high schools entered their work in 12th annual Teen Invitational at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. click for more
Backed by a $750,000 federal grant for a planning study, North Adams and Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art are looking to undo some of that damage.
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"It wasn't 100 percent consistent but I was afforded the opportunity to get to know other people with different religion, beliefs, backgrounds and culture and to be able to embrace that." click for more