ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – On Thursday, Governor Brian Kemp, Majority Leader Steve Gooch, State Representative Will Wade, and Windstream Communications CEO Tony Thomas announced a $20.4 million project that will bring high-speed internet to 8,200 places in Lumpkin County.
The funds are part of the American Rescue Plan funds, matched from Windstream Communications.
People lined up to learn more about how they can access the internet. According to data from the state’s Broadband Access Map, more than a third of locations in Lumpkin County remain underserved.
Residents in Lumpkin County hope that this will connect schools, businesses, and homes that are currently without internet access.
Gina Fields opened her own bakery out of her home. It’s called Mimi’s Cottage Bakery. She bakes cakes, cake pops, cookies, and pretzels for her customers. She dreams of starting a website and marketing her business, but right now she doesn’t have reliable internet at home.
“The more I get myself out there, the more business picks up. The best thing of all is delivering a birthday cake to a child and you see the expression on their face, that is the best for me. I want to start a website for one, I want to start a business Facebook page,” said Fields.
Rural Georgia counties are often left out. The terrain can make it expensive and difficult to lay fiber. According to Georgia Tech Research Center, more than 1.6 million Georgians don’t have access to high-speed internet. It can impact learning. In smaller school systems, more than half of students don’t have access to the internet at home.
Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch lives in Lumpkin County. He serves on the rural broadband access committee, which identifies what areas in the state are in need of funding. He said that this expansion project would help companies interested in moving to the area, help students study, and help people working from home.
“They would have to load them into their cars and bring them into town. They take them to the library or the Chick-Fil-A just to allow their kids to be able to do their homework,” said Maj. Leader Steve Gooch.
Gooch said that he believes in the next two years more rural Georgia counties will get funding for similar projects.
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