An Update on Gibson Connect
2:46PM June 06, 2018
We’ve been especially busy at Gibson EMC and at Gibson
Connect preparing to provide you with access to high-speed internet service. This
is something that we are committed to doing because access is vitally important
to our members and to our communities.
It was just last July that our board voted to form Gibson
Connect, Gibson EMC’s not-for-profit subsidiary. In October we launched
join.gibsonconnect.com, a place where members register and, based on meeting
their zones’ participation requirements, guide the order of our fiber
construction process.
In 2017 we applied for three Tennessee Broadband Grants and in
January of this year we were notified that we had been approved for one that
will help us serve Lake County and the far northwestern part of Obion County.
By February, three of our zones had met their participation
goals and our board approved moving forward with the first phase of Gibson
Connect’s construction project. During
Phase 1 we will build fiber to the three zones that first met their
participation goals (Medina, Dyer and Three Way) and the zones covered by the
grant (Tiptonville, Ridgely and Samburg).
In March, Gibson Connect purchased the LitePipe division of
Jones Telecommunications and hired former owner Tony Jones. Since that time, we have brought in
additional Gibson Connect staff to help ensure we are well prepared to provide
the internet service you need.
We’ve also ordered materials, sent out requests for
proposals, done engineering and will begin construction this month. We hope to
have Phase 1 completed and the engineering started for Phase II by the end of
2018 or by early 2019.
Because of the magnitude of this project – in terms of the
cost, the area to be covered and the work required, we must do the fiber
buildout in a way that is financially prudent and physically manageable. At best, this will be a multi-year project,
but we will keep you informed all along the way. We sincerely appreciate your support and ask
for your continued patience.