BELLEVILLE, Ont. — During a virtual meeting yesterday, 59 heads of council from municipalities across eastern Ontario voiced their support for the Eastern Ontario Regional Network (EORN) “Gig Project” and are calling on the federal and provincial governments to help fund the proposed $1.6-billion public-private partnership to bring gigabit fibre Internet service to homes and businesses in the region.
EORN has been seeking federal and provincial support for its Gig Project, and says today in a press release it is requesting $200 million each from the two levels of government.
“This is about six per cent of the total funds the governments of Canada and Ontario have committed to broadband expansion. Given that recent analysis shows rural eastern Ontario accounts for about 30% of all under-served households in Ontario, the project offers tremendous value,” reads EORN’s press release.
In addition to funds from the federal and provincial governments, EORN says investments in the project would come from the private sector “through EORN’s proven model for expanding connectivity in underserved regions,” says the release.
The municipal leaders who took part in the virtual meeting on Tuesday are joining the chairs of EORN, the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus (EOWC) and the Eastern Ontario Mayors’ Caucus (EOMC) in urging the federal and provincial governments to fund the Gig Project.
“The assembled heads of council were loud and clear in saying they will urge both the federal and provincial governments to commit to funding this essential broadband project,” said Debbie Robinson, chair of the EOWC and warden of Renfrew County, in the press release. “The EORN model, which pools resources and planning at a regional scale, is proven to be efficient and effective. It is straightforward for the telecommunications industry and preferred by local governments, which have limited capacity to manage such projects on their own.”
“It was so encouraging to have 59 mayors, reeves and wardens join our virtual meeting on short notice,” added Murray Jones, chair of EORN and warden of Peterborough County. “To then hear their keen interest in supporting the EORN Gig project really speaks to their desire to do something truly game-changing for our citizens and businesses. We got a huge vote of confidence from them and for that we are extremely grateful.”
EORN is a non-profit created by the EOWC and works with governments and community organizations to improve and leverage broadband access to fuel economic development and growth. EORN is currently working on a $213-million project, funded by public and private sector partners, to improve and expand cellular services across the region. Building on that project is beginning this year.
From 2010 to 2014, EORN helped to improve broadband access to almost 90% of eastern Ontario through a $175-million public-private partnership. As a result of the project, 423,000 homes and businesses are able to access services of up to 10 Mbps download.
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