Lewis County and ToledoTel officials recently met to officially kick off a private-public partnership that aims to eventually expand high-speed internet services in the Winlock area, according to a news release from the county.
“A $23.5 million grant from the Washington State Broadband Office will pay the way for internet service to eventually be extended to over 2,300 homes and businesses,” the county’s news release stated. “ToledoTel will now begin engineering and design of the project, plus provide an additional $2.35 million in matching funds towards the project.”
The partnership was first announced last year.
The Lewis County commissioners’ resolution accepting the state grant stated the project “will be a game-changing boost to Winlock area’s growth, economic development and quality of life.”
“There’s the convenience, there’s business purposes; all those are really vital and becoming more and more a part of everyday life, and we want to provide those services to everyone in Lewis County that we can,” Lewis County Manager Erik Martin said. “This project is really the beginning, in terms of getting service out to folks, and we want to focus on getting broadband out to all rural areas and all residents of Lewis County.”
At the completion of the project, which is expected to run through 2026, the county will own the broadband infrastructure and ToledoTel will use the fiber optic lines to assist in connecting businesses and homeowners to internet service, according to the news release.
For more information, visit https://www.commerce.wa.gov/building-infrastructure/washington-statewide-broadband-act
