DAILY PROGRESS, GRACIE HART BROOKS

he first Firefly Broadband connections in Madison County have begun.

During a rural fiber celebration Monday at Early Mountain Vineyards, it was revealed that approximately eight Madison County homes are already hooked to the service with more to come as county leaders set their sights on universal coverage.

The connections come as Firefly’s RISE project is ongoing. In 2022, the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) signed a contract with the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), launching the $288 million fiber internet construction project known as RISE. The project, being constructed by Firefly Fiber Broadband with partners Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) and Dominion Energy, aims to provide access to affordable and reliable high-speed internet to more than 36,000 businesses and residences. The project is being funded via a $79 million VATI grant administered by TJPDC along with $209 million in local and private sector matching funds. Madison, one of the 13 counties in the project, is contributing approximately $2.1 million. The project is expected to cover the eastern and southern portions of the county—Brightwood, Oak Park, Locust Dale, Radiant and Rochelle to name a few.

In July, Firefly was awarded a second $12.2 million VATI grant, also administered by TJPDC, to expand upon the initial project, funding a $48.6 million second phase covering 603 miles and nearly 6,000 additional eligible locations in 10 counties—Amherst, Appomattox, Buckingham, Campbell, Fluvanna, Goochland, Greene, Louisa, Madison and Powhatan. In Madison County, 210 miles of fiber were included in the grant application for a total investment of approximately $11 million. The county will fund $400,000 in a local match. The eligible areas include the northernmost areas of the county including Nethers, Etlan and Syria as well as an area northwest of Hood and pinpointed locations in the midst of the current RISE project.

And now, the scope has grown again. During Monday’s celebration, Firefly President and CEO Gary Wood said the company has signed an agreement with Brightspeed, another internet service provider, to take over its coverage area in Madison County. Brightspeed had intended to use FCC funding to provide internet service to more than 600 locations, mainly in the western portion of the county, by Dec. 15, 2024.

“It’s good news because Brightspeed didn’t have a presence here, it wasn’t a good fit in their construction and it fits perfectly into ours,” Wood said. “We’ll soon be making contact with those 680 [locations] and pulling them into our system.”

Wood said altogether, Firefly will serve more than 5,000 locations.

“The number itself is not important,” Wood said. “We have a commitment to get to every unserved area in Madison County.”

Mark Ponton, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative’s Director of Broadband and Fiber Services, said the new areas from Brightspeed will be folded into the ongoing work in the area. They will be funded using the existing grant funding. The original RISE project is anticipated to be complete by summer 2025. Make ready work and fiber construction is ongoing in Madison County with the first connections in the Stanardsville-McMullen area of the project occurring now. The area is primarily in Greene County, but a small portion is located within Madison County.

The project is made possible through not only state and federal funding, but also via partnerships with the county and Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC). The cooperative paired with Firefly to host the broadband on its electrical poles.

“We were thrilled to join forces,” REC President and CEO John Hewa said. “There are a lot of challenges in our industry, but this project is a win-win.”

Hewa said the cooperative is not only connecting its members to high-speed internet service, but is also strengthening its grid through improvements to the poles and leveraging federal money to do it.

“It’s one of the very best living demonstrations of the cooperation [between] cooperatives,” Hewa said. “We’re excited to keep rolling, we’re excited to do more and we really appreciate everyone who has come together to make this happen.”

Wood said Firefly is connecting approximately 250 new services a week and approximately 150 of those are located within the REC service territory.

The project wouldn’t have been possible without funding. Wood said having funding partners was a critical element to make the project work. He said Madison County has been a great partner, the state has done an impressive job allocating funding to broadband and the federal government has as well. In particular, he said, congresswoman Abigail Spanberger has been a large supporter of broadband.

Spanberger said Firefly has been able to do amazing things across Central Virginia which is life-changing for children, businesses and the economy.

“It enables life in such a monumental way, everything from vacations to healthcare to paying the bills,” she said.

Spanberger said she’s proud that the American Rescue Plan sent $700 million to Virginia and that the state government made sure a portion of that went to its longterm plan to improve connectivity across the state. She said its exciting to see the partnership with Firefly that is occurring as the state gets closer to universal coverage.

“No Virginia student should have to sit in the McDonald’s parking lot to do their homework,” she said. “No senior or veteran should be denied or not able to get telehealth services because they don’t have a connection. No farmer should be at a disadvantage because they can’t talk to their suppliers or update their equipment. It puts them at a disadvantage at no fault of their own.

“I’m so grateful that we’re once again celebrating a community success that will have real impact on the lives of people,” she added.

Madison County residents are encouraged to pre-register for Firefly by visiting https://www.fireflyva.com/partners-madison. The site allows for residents to check availability and view updates on how the project is progressing in their area.