The Federal Government has announced $700,000 in funding to help bring high-speed internet to more than 1,100 rural homes in Prince Edward County and Bancroft.
The cash comes from the Rapid Response Stream of the $2.75 billion Universal Broadband Fund which was launched in November of last year.
The government money is in addition to a $324,000 investment from Cogeco Connexion, to bring fibre broadband to 242 homes in Rednersville and Mountain View, and $1.7 million from Bell Canada, to provide high-speed internet to 870 customers in Bancroft.
Both PEC Mayor Steve Ferguson and Bancroft Mayor Paul Jenkins hailed the investments as keys to the local economic recovery, following the pandemic, with MP Neil Ellis calling the upgrades “essential in our digital age.”
Ellis says once the contracts are signed, they’re hoping for those new customers to be online by the fall of this year, or early next year.
