Sandgate Internet Committee

Project Update - July 2006

You’ve probably been wondering what we’ve been doing. We’re using the Vermont Rural Broadband Project’s website to keep everyone posted on our efforts to bring highspeed internet access to our neighbors in Sandgate. We will have an informational meeting at Town Hall when we have something concrete to pass along. Until then, you can check this website for updates on our progress. You can also contact us at info@SandgateBroadband.org. We will reply.

We have the results of the survey mailed to all Sandgate property owners this spring. The results are very encouraging to us. Thank you to everyone who returned the surveys.

• Slightly over 25% of the surveys we mailed were returned completed.
• Of the returned surveys, 90% of the households ARE interested in highspeed internet access.
• There is very widespread use of computers for personal, business and educational purposes.
• 60% of respondents prioritize access speed, installation and monthly costs highest amongst their concerns. The majority preferred maximum installation costs of $200 or less, and monthly costs of $45 or $30.
• Interested Sandgate residents and second-homeowners are spread out to every corner of the town. Almost every road is represented.

Now, here’s what we’ve been up to since June. We are working with people at the Vermont Rural Broadband Project to locate vendors who are interested in serving the homes in Sandgate with highspeed internet access. Our goal is to bring service to as much of the town as possible as quickly and cost effectively as we can. It’s an intensive, lengthy process and we ask for your patience—and help wherever you can provide it for us. This process will probably take a year or more.

Most likely, we will be looking at wireless high speed Internet vendors. Verizon is just not interested in any area where the customer base is spread out as we are here in Sandgate. They are only interested in their bottom line. We are contacting Adelphia cable, but it doesn’t look good there either since they don’t even offer cable TV to us.

We have met with the town’s selectboard and they are supportive of this effort. There might be some grant money available through the state to help vendors defray some of their upfront infrastructure costs. If we can secure these funds, we then have leverage with the vendors to bring down the consumers’ installation and/or monthly charges.

Wireless broadband solutions are more common in the northern part of Vermont, but more and more towns in our area are looking for alternatives to just waiting around for Verizon or cable access. This will make us more attractive to vendors.

Keep checking this website, and you know how to reach us at info@SandgateBroadband.org . We will be in touch.

Sandgate Internet Committee
Betsy Rathbun-Gunn
Karen Christiansen
Mark Madison