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West Finley and Bentleyville approved for Washington County Broadband program

Posted Jun 30, 2022, by Paul Fedore

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Recently, the Washington County commissioners approved spending $3.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act or (ARPA) funds to extend broadband service to 944 homes, businesses, and other locations in Bentleyville and West Finley Township, which currently has no internet service. The total project cost is $5.3 million, but Windstream will be providing $2.1 million in aid for design, engineering, and construction costs. 

Kinetic by Windstream, of Little Rock, Arkansas, is a subsidiary of internet service provider Windstream Holdings, Inc. They will administer the broadband project, bringing 1-gigabyte service to 542 locations in West Finley and 402 locations in Bentleyville. This service exceeds the federal minimum speed of 100 megabits per second and will take about two years to complete.

West Finley is one of nine communities in the McGuffey school district. Broadband internet service will bring opportunities for students to enhance their education and will allow residents in the area to be better connected with community resources and job opportunities.

CCJ is glad that the county is finally upgrading internet access for its residents and will continue watching for updates to this program. For more information or to get involved in this work, please contact our Field Program Coordinator Paul at 724-229-3550 Ext. 8 or paul@centerforcoalfieldjustice.org.

Author

  • Paul Fedore

    Paul Fedore has been a resident of Washington County since 2016 and previously worked with Washington County United, a chapter of PA United, as a canvasser fighting for economic, environmental, and racial justice. He loves camping, hiking, fishing, and boating. Paul joined CCJ’s team in July 2020 as the Field Program Coordinator to help deepen and strengthen our relationships with communities in southwestern Pennsylvania and to ensure that people have a pathway to engage in improving their communities. As of late 2023, Paul is now a Community Organizer, and is excited to work with everyone to hold fossil fuel companies and our elected officials accountable and to organize to build power in our small towns and rural communities. Contact Paul at paul@centerforcoalfieldjustice.org.

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