123NET wins $65 Million Project with Allegan County for County-wide Broadband Internet

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., June 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- 123NET and Allegan County have been awarded a $65 Million Project to construct an open access, carrier neutral fiber network. This county-wide broadband project will begin construction in mid-August.

"We are honored and excited to be chosen by the Michigan High Speed Internet Office to meet the needs for unserved and underserved residents in Allegan County," said Dan Irvin, CEO of 123NET. "We look forward to partnering with additional communities throughout Michigan in a combined effort to make this state the best connected on the planet."

The Allegan County Board of Commissioners and 123NET established a public-private partnership earlier this year and applied for the Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks (ROBIN) grant together. Now that the project has been awarded, 123NET will construct an extensive 1,100 miles of high-capacity fiber and provide world-class connectivity to over 10,000 unserved and underserved homes across the county.

"Allegan County is leading the way in Michigan to get everyone connected to the internet," said Jill Dunham, Allegan County's Broadband Project Manager. "We are grateful to be part of one of the top-rated proposals submitted and appreciate the outstanding partnership with 123NET."

123NET will provide fiber internet with speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second, which is 100 times faster than the grant's requirement. This project will establish Allegan County as the best-connected county in the state and one of the fastest in the nation. The new network will be open access and carrier neutral, enabling other network providers to utilize the fiber infrastructure to offer their services.

"The Board of Commissioners vision has been to bring broadband to 10,000 addresses without access to high-speed internet in Allegan County. Bringing our vision to reality has been a team effort and this funding is a key step to getting it done," said Rob Sarro, Allegan County Administrator.

123NET is investing $17.5 million toward the project, with additional funding coming from the ROBIN Grant and Allegan County's American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Funds. Construction will be completed over the next two years. Business and residents in Allegan County can add their support for this project here and sign up for updates: https://www.123.net/allegan-county/

SOURCE 123NET