Rural internet connectivity issues are nothing new, albeit annoying to say the least, and councillors want to address those issues especially since the internet has become a vital connection during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Councillors in Prince Edward County during a virtual meeting on Thursday discussed ways to better connect residents in the municipality, especially those in the ‘last mile’, such as areas in the south of the County including West Lake, Cherry Valley and South Bay, which tend to be the areas still experiencing significant gaps connectivity issues.
CAO Marcia Wallace brought forward a motion to see if there are ways internet connectivity could be improved on a day when internet connections were dropped and the meeting was not live streamed because of technological issues and was later posted to the County’s website.
Wallace asked for a Request for Proposals that would see the municipality offering incentives to those companies that enter into an agreement to deliver internet service to underserved parts of the County, as well as free access to municipal towers and buildings for the transmission and supply of internet services, which would see a $40,000 a year loss in revenues.
Some councillors felt the loss of revenue was worth it if the end result means better accessibility for residents, while others felt there were other ways to go about fixing the problem.
Mayor Steve Ferguson said they have to deal with this problem.
Wallace suggested instead of a request for proposals, they could issue an expression of interest, an equally viable choice.
She said it would allow for public consultation to figure out what they are trying to solve and what areas to focus on.
Wallace estimated they would need three weeks for consultation with the public and staff could issue the EOI fairly quickly after that, potentially even early July.
Council passed the motion to begin the consultation process.
