Glades Electric Cooperative partners with internet service provider Conexon Connect to bring world-class broadband to rural areas across Florida's Heartland

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Sep 26, 2022, 16:00 ET

Connect's partnership will deliver high-speed internet access to homes and businesses across four counties with Connect, powered by Glades Electric Cooperative, fiber network

MOORE HAVEN, Fla., Sept. 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Conexon Connect, the internet service provider formed by rural fiber-optic network design and construction management leader Conexon, has been selected by Glades Electric Cooperative to deliver high-speed fiber internet access for rural Floridians within the cooperative's service territory.

The cooperative is partnering with Connect to launch and deploy a nearly 2,600-mile fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network. The Connect, powered by Glades Electric Cooperative, network will deliver reliable, affordable high-speed internet service to homes and businesses across portions of Glades, Hendry, Highlands and Okeechobee counties. The goal is to expand fiber broadband access to all of the co-op's approximately 13,400 members.

"The opportunity to partner with a co-op such as Glades Electric takes us right back to the heart of why we do this," said Randy Klindt, Conexon Founding Partner and Conexon Connect CEO. "We look forward to delivering exceptional multi-gigabit internet service to unserved and underserved homes and businesses in the rural heartland of Florida, providing access to the connectivity they need."

Glades Electric's nearly $50 million network is expected to be completed within three years. The fiber-optic network will offer members access to symmetrical (same upload and download speeds) multi-gigabit internet capabilities – among the fastest and most robust in the nation.

"The abrupt change in our lifestyles during the pandemic brought to light how far behind in broadband access Florida's Heartland has been left," said Jeff Brewington, Glades Electric Cooperative CEO. "We began to research how Glades Electric could be part of the solution, which led us to Conexon to help us bridge the gap in a very affordable way and continue our mission of 'Neighbors Working for Neighbors.'"

In addition to fiber broadband, Connect, powered by Glades Electric Cooperative, will provide HD-quality phone service and enable the future benefits of smart grid capabilities to the electrical infrastructure, including improved power outage response times, better load balancing, more efficient electricity delivery and more.

"Over the past several years, I've heard people analogize rural broadband to the rural electrification movement of the 1930s and 1940s," Conexon Partner Jonathan Chambers said. "To us, it isn't an analogy; it's a reality. The same companies that built electric networks across the state are building broadband networks. After decades of failure by the telephone and cable industries, electric co-ops in Florida are stepping up and stepping in to solve the digital divide. We're proud to join Glades Electric Cooperative in this endeavor."

Conexon and Conexon Connect work with electric cooperatives and other organizations committed to serving their communities with fiber broadband. With its clients, the company has designed more than 200,000 miles of fiber, builds more than 50,000 miles of fiber annually and has connected more than 500,000 rural Americans to fiber to the home.

About Glades Electric Cooperative
Glades Electric Cooperative was formed in 1945 to serve residents of Florida's rural heartland who had been left behind in the electrification of Florida. Today, Glades Electric provides power to more than 17,000 accounts over 2,600 miles of line in portions of Glades, Hendry, Highlands and Okeechobee counties.

About Conexon Connect
Conexon Connect is the internet service provider (ISP) arm of rural fiber broadband design and construction management leader Conexon. The subsidiary was formed to operate and manage cooperative fiber-to-the-home networks. Connect leverages Conexon's decades of co-op operations, fiber-optic design and construction, telecommunications, federal and state lobbying and customer experience management expertise to successfully launch and operate projects. The Connect approach is to work with electric cooperatives to launch and deploy high-speed fiber-optic networks – the gold standard of communications transmission – enabling them to offer world-class fiber broadband to their members. Connect today is partnering with multiple cooperatives in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and Missouri.

About Conexon
Conexon works with Rural Electric Cooperatives to bring fiber to the home in rural communities. The company is comprised of professionals who have worked in electric cooperatives and the telecommunications industry and offer decades of individual experience in business planning, building networks, marketing and selling telecommunications. Conexon offers its electric cooperative clients end-to-end broadband deployment and operations support, from a project's conception all the way through to its long-term sustainability. It works with clients to analyze economic feasibility, secure financing, design the network, manage construction, provide operational support, optimize business performance and determine optimal partnerships. To date, Conexon has assisted more than 275 electric cooperatives, 60 of which are deploying fiber networks, with more than 500,000 rural Americans connected to fiber to the home. The company has secured nearly $2 billion in federal, state and local grants and subsidies for its clients.

Cindy Parks
913-526-6912
[email protected]

SOURCE Conexon Connect