Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
5 <br /> Slide #5 <br /> Questions <br /> Commissioner Greene thanked Jim Northrup and Catharine Rice for the presentation, <br /> and asked if they could talk about next steps. She said Catharine Rice reminded the Board that <br /> ARPA money can only be used on a fiber solution. She said the shorter-term, wireless, projects <br /> will be a second conversation after the RFP is out. <br /> Jim Northrup said there are a lot of options on the table. He said during the last two <br /> task force meetings the group moved towards addressing long term goals. He said the <br /> committee felt urgency to design an RFP around ARPA requirements. He said they would <br /> revisit the short-term solution, once the RFP is completed. <br /> Catharine Rice said the funding source helped to clear the view. She said if the network <br /> is providing less than 100 by 20, ARPA funds cannot be used. She said the task force decided <br /> to pause on the short term, and get the long-term project going. <br /> Commissioner McKee said the last meeting helped him understand that the short-term <br /> solution could not be funded with ARPA funds, and he looks forward to talking about the <br /> wireless option in the fall. He said State funding may be a possible option to fund wireless. He <br /> said the task force needed to look at long-term solutions, and $5 million is good seed money. <br /> Commissioner Hamilton asked if"building to unserved and the served" could be <br /> clarified. She asked if that means building out to customers in Chapel Hill where they are <br /> already served. <br /> Catharine Rice said the Treasury guidelines say that as long as you are building out to <br /> the unserved you can also build out to the served. She said the taskforce is focused on the <br /> 5000 homes that are the most underserved right now. <br /> Commissioner Hamilton asked if the estimated costs for serving the 5200 homes could <br /> be identified. <br /> Jim Northrup said a realistic cost from Time Warner is $2,000. He said the RiverStreet, <br /> company, who is partnering with Piedmont Electric, said $5,000 per pass. He said $5,000 <br /> times 5,000 is $25 million. He said this is just an estimate, and the RFP will provide the most <br /> accurate answer to that question. <br /> Commissioner McKee said the further out one goes into a rural area, the more it is <br /> going to cost per unit serve. He said sometimes you have to go by someone who is already <br /> served in order to get to someone who is unserved. He said it is hard to know how much it will <br /> cost. <br /> Commissioner Fowler asked if there is a plan to fund the remaining amount. She asked <br /> if state or federal funds may play a part, and would this information affect the RFP. <br /> Commissioner McKee said the County has to move forward, because there is a time <br /> frame for obligating the money. <br /> Jim Northrup said the federal government offered the RDOF money as an incentive, and <br /> the Time Warner is funding the rest of the cost. He said the $5 million from Orange County <br /> could be seed money for vendors to build out the full infrastructure. <br />