Broadband Grant Denied for Northern Neck

The money was available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and reflects the government’s desire to bring broadband to America’s rural and underserved regions. But the Northern Neck Middle Peninsula application was rejected because the counties did not convince the government the program could be sustained, once the federal funding ran out. Specifically, the U.S. government was looking to local Internet Service Providers to commit “match” funds, which they declined to do. County officials had argued that broadband access is key to economic development in the region. For now, its back to square one, in the search for ways to make that happen. Mark Huffman, WCVE News, Heathsville