About VCRD's Vermont Rural Broadband Community Internet Projects
In the winter of 2002-2003, the Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) and the Northeast Kingdom Collaborative sponsored a study of the use of the Internet by businesses and residents in northeastern Vermont. While the use of the Internet was high, even in the most rural areas, the smaller communities were frustrated by a lack of affordable high speed Internet access.
As a result, the VCRD created the Vermont Rural Broadband Project to assist rural communities across the state in local efforts to acquire affordable broadband service for their areas. The solution for each community may be different -- from persuading national providers to extend existing services to encouraging small local providers to service a new area to helping towns create their own service. In all cases, the projects start by connecting with the local residents and businesses that want broadband service.
The list below contains all the known local broadband efforts in Vermont. Please contact us to add other efforts in your community. If you don't see a project in your immediate area, use the Statewide Registry to record your interest in broadband, and we will put you in touch with any new activities in your area. Ascutney Area
The Southern Windsor County Regional Planning Commission, working with the towns of Reading and West Windsor, sponsored a project to bring broadband service to the area. The Commission has selected WaveComm to provide a wireless broadband service, and that service is now available to many parts of these two towns. If you live in Reading or West Windsor and are interested in obtaining this service, please go to www.WaveComm.com.
Brandon
The Brandon Area Chamber of Commerce completed a survey of local businesses to ascertain their need for broadband, and has successfully worked with Verizon to bring DSL to the town center. If you still need broadband in the Brandon area, please use the Statewide Registry and you will be put in contact with the Brandon effort.
Calais
Calais formed a local project committee to address broadband issues and completed a survey of local broadband demand. They joined other area towns to support a wireless system from the Cloud Alliance. If you live in Calais area and still need broadband, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Chelsea
The Chelsea Economic Development Committee is coordinating efforts to bring broadband service to Chelsea. They are working with other local towns to create a regional broadband solution. For more information on the Chelsea broadband activities, contact the Committee at webmaster@chelseavt.org. The Chelsea Economic Development Committee is working with other area towns on the East Central Fiber Project.
Dummerston
The Dummerston Selectboard sponsored a survey to determine broadband demand in the town, and community members worked with committees from Marlboro, Newfane and Putney to explore broadband options for the entire area. For more information on the broadband initiative in Dummerston, contact the Dummerston Selectboard.
Duxbury
With limited cable and DSL service, many sections of Duxbury have no broadband options. The Citizens for Duxbury Broadband are exploring broadband options for the unserved neighbors. If you are interested in broadband in Duxbury, please register with the Duxbury Broadband Project..
East-Central Vermont
Over a dozen towns in the east-central region of Vermont have banded together to explore building a fiber network to bring broadband and other services to the area. For more information on this project, please go to East Central Fiber Project. East Montpelier
The Town of East Montpelier sponsored a project to bring broadband service to the town. They joined other area towns to support a wireless system from the Cloud Alliance.. If you live in the East Montpelier area and still need broadband, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Fairlee/West Fairlee
FAIRband.net is a community effort to bring broadband communications to ALL residents of the towns of Fairlee and West Fairlee, Vermont. The goal is to make fiberoptic cable available to all residential and commercial locations in the two towns and to offer high-speed internet, digital telephone and digital television services in cooperation with a local vendor of these services.
Fletcher
The Fletcher Select Board is pursuing broadband options for the town. If you need broadband in Fletcher and have not already responded to the town-wide survey, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Glover
The Glover Planning Commission sponsored a survey of broadband demand in the town, and some parts of town now have wireless broadband service from adjoining towns. If you live in Glover and need broadband, please register with the NEK Broadband Project and they will help you find service in your part of Glover.
Grand Isle/South Hero
Grand Isle and South Hero residents formed Grand Isle Broadband Project to bring better broadband service to the island of Grand Isle and surrounding areas. Currently, Verizon offers DSL in some sections of Grand Isle Town, and both Soundtivity and GlobalNet offer wireless service on the island.
Granville
The Town of Granville is exploring multiple avenues for increasing broadband coverage in the town, including wireless, DSL and fiber. If you need broadband in Granville, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry. For more information on the progress of broadband in Granville, please contact Cheryl Sargeant at csargeant@madriver.com.
Greensboro
Greensboro residents formed a project to bring broadband service to Greensboro and surrounding areas. They selected WirelessVT to bring wireless broadband service to the town, and that service has been available in Greensboro since July 2005. If you live in Greensboro and are interested in obtaining this service, please go to www.WirelessVT.com.
Island Pond
Island Pond had a committee exploring broadband options but the committee is no longer active. However, there are now multiple options for broadband service in the area. Please contact NEK Broadband Project for information about the available options.
Jericho
The Town of Jericho is pursuing a fiber network with neighboring towns Underhill and Westford. For more information on this project, please go to www.Jericho-Underhill.org.
Lamoille County
The Lamoille Economic Development Corporation and the Lamoille County Planning Commission worked toward a goal of having affordable broadband service for every home and business in the county. They assisted local towns in targeted efforts to attract broadband providers. Both Elmore and Johnson formed broadband committees. If you need broadband in the Lamoille County please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Lowell
The town of Lowell has sponsored a project to bring broadband service to the town. There is now wireless broadband available in some parts of Lowell from Island Pond Wireless. If you live in the Lowell area please register with the Lowell Broadband Project.
Lunenburg
The Town of Lunenburg is sponsored a project to bring broadband service to the town, but still has limited service. If you live in the Lunenburg area please register with the NEK Broadband Project Marlboro
Marlboro residents formed a committee, and worked with committees from Newfane, Dummerston and Putney to explore broadband options for the area. There is now wireless broadband available in some parts of town from Great Auk Wireless. If you need broadband in the Marlboro area please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Marshfield/Plainfield
The Marshfield/Plainfield Community Internet Project spearheaded efforts in the towns of Marshfield and Plainfield. The Marshfield-Plainfield committee selected the Cloud Alliance to build a wireless broadband service for the towns. Service is now available to many locations.
Newark
Citizens from Newark have formed a local project committee to address broadband issues and are surveying the demand for a local broadband service. If you live in the Newark area and need broadband please register with the Newark Broadband Project
Newfane
The Newfane Selectboard is sponsored a survey to determine broadband demand in the town, and community members worked with committees from Marlboro, Dummerston and Putney to explore broadband options for the area. If you need broadband in the Newfane area please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Northeast Kingdom
The Northeast Kingdom Collaborative is sponsoring the NEK Broadband Project to bring additional broadband services into the rural areas of Caledonia, Essex and Orleans counties. There are now several broadband options within the NEK. Contact the project for additional information about these options.
Pownal
Although some sections of Pownal have broadband service available through Comcast Cable, there are many residents beyond the cable route. The Pownal Broadband Committee is surveying the unserved residents, and working to bring in a wireless service for these areas. If you need broadband in Pownal, please register with the Pownal Broadband Project
Putney
Putney residents formed a committee, and worked with committees from Newfane, Dummerston and Marlboro to explore broadband options for the area, but these committees are now inactive. If you need broadband in the Putney area please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Ripton
The community of Ripton has formed a cooperative to provide wireless broadband service to the town, using a grant from the Vermont Broadband Council and facilities donated by Middlebury College. For more information on the project and how to join the coop, visit the Ripton Broadband Cooperative web site at www.Ripton-Coop.net.
Royalton
The Planning Commission from Royalton have formed a local citizens' committee to address broadband issues and are surveying the demand for a local broadband service. If you live in the Royalton area please register with the Royalton Broadband Project. The Royalton Planning Commission is working with other area towns on the East Central Fiber Project.
Rupert
Citizens from Rupert have formed a local project committee to address broadband issues and are surveying the demand for a local broadband service. Verizon has recently implemented DSL for some sections of Rupert. If you live in the Rupert area and still need broadband service, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.
Sandgate
A local committee has formed in Sandgate to find vendors who will bring high-speed internet access to the town. For more information about this project please read Sandgate Project Update.
Stamford
Stamford formed a local project committee to address broadband issues and is creating a co-operative to provide wireless broadband service to the town. If you live in the Stamford area please register with the Stamford Broadband Project.
Strafford
Citizens from Strafford have formed a local project committee to address broadband issues and are surveying the demand for a local broadband service. If you live in the Strafford area please register with the Strafford Broadband Project. Some of the town now has wireless broadband service from Wavecomm. The Strafford Broadband Committee is working with other area towns on the East Central Fiber Project. Thetford
Citizens from Thetford have formed a project to address broadband issues and are surveying the demand for a local broadband service. If you live in the Thetford area please register with the Thetford Broadband Committee. The Thetford Broadband Committee is working with other area towns on the East Central Fiber Project. Tunbridge
Citizens from Tunbridge have formed a local project committee to address broadband issues and are surveying the demand for a local broadband service. If you live in the Tunbridge area please register with the Tunbridge Broadband Project. The Tunbridge Broadband Project is working with other area towns on the East Central Fiber Project.
Underhill
The Town of Underhill has formed a Broadband Taskforce to explore options for increasing broadband coverage, and is pursuing a fiber network with neighboring towns Jericho and Westford. For more information on this project, please go to www.Jericho-Underhill.org.
Vershire
The Vershire Selectboard has appointed a Telecommunications Committee to study the feasibility of improving the telecommunications services in Vershire, including broadband service. If you live in Vershire and need broadband, please register at the Vershire Broadband Project. The Vershire Telecommunications Committee is working with other area towns on the East Central Fiber Project. Westford
The Westford High Speed Internet Committee has a project underway to acquire broadband services in Westford. Westford is working with the neighboring towns of Underhill and Jericho to bring fiber-based broadband to these towns. For more information on this project, please go to www.Jericho-Underhill.org. Westmore
The Town of Westmore sponsored a project to bring high-speed Internet service to the town and selected Island Pond Wireless to build a wireless broadband service. The Island Pond Wireless (now part of Great Auk Wireless) service has been available to Westmore residents since September 2005. If you live in the Westmore and are interested in obtaining this service, please go to www.IslandPondWireless.com.
Windham
The northern half of the Town of Windham has DSL service available through VTEL, but the southern half of the town has no high-speed Internet service. A local committee is trying to bring broadband to the area. If you live in Windham or the adjoining towns and need broadband, please register at the Windham Broadband Project. There is also considerable interest in broadband in other parts of Windham County. If you need broadband in parts of Windham County that are not near the Town of Windham, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry and we will consolidate your interest with others in the area to determine the overall demand for broadband.
Worcester - Middlesex
Citizens from Worcester and Middlesex formed a local project committee to address broadband issues. They joined other central Vermont area towns to support a wireless system from the Cloud Alliance, but most of the town still does not have broadband. The committee has now disbanded, but if you live in the Worcester or Middlesex area and need broadband, please register with the Vermont Rural Broadband Project Statewide Registry.