MESSAGE FROM LAURA S.: Reject proposed amendments to Broadband agreement (Agenda Item 6-a)

[Wil Glenn]

This below message is from Laura S. (la...@streitfeld.com) that did not post to the platform correctly.

 

Wil Glenn

Community Relations Director

Orange County Government
Office Phone: 919.245.2302

Mobile Phone: 919.430.4900

Email: wgl...@orangecountync.gov

 

Sign up for Orange County News and Updates.

 

From: Laura S <la...@streitfeld.com>
Sent: Monday, September 15, 2025 3:55 PM
To: ALL_BOCC_MANAGER_CLERK <OCB...@orangecountync.gov>
Subject: Reject proposed amendments to Broadband agreement (Agenda Item 6-a)

 

CAUTION: External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless verified. Report suspicious emails with the Phish Alert Button located on your Outlook menu bar on the Home tab.

To Orange County Commissioners:

 

Do not amend Broadband agreement

 

Lumos/T-Mobile has requested again to push back deadlines to install broadband fiber to rural residents, and to cut in half the number of remaining households that will receive service, on tomorrow’s BOCC agenda, Item 6-a. 

 

Preserve Rural Orange opposes the proposal to reduce the number of Orange County locations contracted to receive broadband fiber and to extend project deadlines, which would further delay internet access for more than 1200 households. We urge Orange County to disburse funds only when construction and work are complete in all locations.

 

If commissioners were to approve amending the agreement, there would be no benefit but significant costs to local families, who will continue to be at a disadvantage without reliable, high speed internet essential to participating fully in the workplace, school and community.

 

The project is already a year past the end date in the original contract. In 2024, the company appeared to pause construction for six months and removed project completion dates from the map. It is unclear how many installations have been completed over the past three months, or whether the company has again stopped construction work. 

 

Improve public-facing data

 

Public-facing information in the agenda and on the county’s Broadband webpage does not offer adequate detail to make informed decisions.

 

According to the Chief Information Officer today, below are numbers of locations slated to receive broadband fiber installation in the agreement as well as approximate numbers of Lumos/T-Mobile’s proposed reductions. 

 

• Locations to receive service per original contract: 6379
• Locations completed as of June 2025: 5187
• Remaining locations to be served: 1183*
• Remaining locations excluding non-addressable locations: 1023 (approximate)
• Remaining locations Lumos proposes to serve: 665
• Remaining locations Lumos proposes not to serve: 600
• Locations completed since June 2025: Unknown

 

*Note: Remaining locations are separate from and do not represent “donut holes” (areas not included in the contract).

 

On the agenda and county Broadband webpage, there are no searchable maps or databases. As a result, proposed changes to the agreement in tonight’s agenda are unclear because the map polygon and purple areas do not delineate roads or properties, and the addresses listed, in 135 pages of more than 6000 locations, appear to be in random order.

 

Please update the BOCC September 16 Agenda and Broadband webpage to provide:

 

• A list of numbers and statistics on: locations in the contract to be served, locations served to date, locations unserved to date, locations proposed to remain unserved, locations in “donut hole” areas
• Searchable GIS map and close-up maps of service areas, indexed, clearly labeled with road names, street addresses and service status
• List of locations served and to be served with fiber, numbered, labeled and sorted by alphabetical road names, ordered numerically by street address, including date of completed service
• List of locations proposed not to receive service, numbered, labeled and sorted by alphabetical road names, and ordered numerically by street address
• Clear timelines and completion dates for installing fiber in all remaining unserved locations
• Link to searchable data sheet of county broadband service areas
• Link to FCC Broadband Map of Orange County (see below)

 

To hold the company accountable for promptly completing fiber installation to all remaining unserved households, please do not change the scope or timeline of the agreement. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

 

 

Laura Streitfeld MPP, MA

Executive Director, Preserve Rural Orange

 

FCC Broadband Map - Orange County: