2308I2204

Purpose: The ConnectMaine Authority Statewide Broadband Infrastructure Project is a last-mile broadband deployment in rural Maine that is designed to bring qualifying broadband to 11,746 unserved households across the state. The covered partnership includes the State of Maine (lead applicant), the towns of Somerville, Washington, and Isle au Haut, and internet service providers Consolidated Communications, Axiom Technologies, and LCI Fiber Optic Network. The covered partnership will carry out seven projects in rural areas of the state.

Activities: The activities of the projects are as follows:

- The LCI/Jefferson Project will extend FTTH service to 100% of all addresses in the town of Jefferson. LCI will extend its existing fiber optic transmission backbone to feed a central office to be built in Jefferson as a distribution hub. The project will provide broadband service from 50/10 Mbps at $49.95 to 100/100 Mbps at $109.95.

- The Axiom/Somerville Project will deploy ADTRAN fiber optic equipment in Somerville to bring a dedicated fiber connection to each home and business. The project will provide broadband service from 25/25 Mbps at $54.99 to 1000/1000 Mbps at $169.99.

- The Axiom/Isle au Haut Project will deploy ADTRAN fiber optic equipment to Isle au Haut, a small island off the coast of Stonington. The project will construct a 100' free-standing tower on the island with a central office at its base, from which FTTH will be distributed to each resident of the island at speeds of 25/25 Mbps at $59.99 to 100/100 Mbps at $109.99.

- The Axiom/Washington Project will deploy ADTRAN fiber optic equipment in Washington to bring a dedicated fiber connection to each home and business. The project will provide broadband service from 25/25 Mbps at $54.99 to 1000/1000 Mbps at $169.99.

- The Consolidated/Blue Hill Project will deploy a FTTP XGS-PON network in the Blue Hill Peninsula, serving the towns of Penobscot, Blue Hill, Brooksville, Castine, Sedgwick, Brookline, and a small portion of Stonington. The project will provide broadband service from 50/50 Mbps at $35 to 1/1 Gbps at $70.

- The Consolidated/Rangeley Lakes Project will deploy a FTTP XGS-PON network in the Rangeley Lakes area of Maine's Appalachian Mountains, serving the towns of Rangeley, Rangeley Plantation, Dallas Plantation, and Sandy River Plantation. The project will provide broadband service from 50/50 Mbps at $35 to 1/1 Gbps at $70.

- The Consolidated/Farmington Project will deploy a FTTP XGS-PON network in the Farmington area, serving the towns of Farmington, Temple, New Sharon, Industry, Wilton, Mercer, New Vineyard, Starks, and Strong. The project will provide broadband service from 50/50 Mbps at $35 to 1/1 Gbps at $70.

Outcomes: All proposed projects in this application are designed to bring gigabit-capable fiber-based broadband service to unserved addresses within the eligible service areas. Each project will provide service to 100% of unserved addresses in six of the designated service areas and 98.5% of unserved addresses in the seventh service area. These projects will allow residents previously unserved with broadband internet to participate in the digital economy, to take or retain jobs that permit remote working, to participate in distance learning programs, and to utilize telehealth programs as opposed to driving from their rural communities to regional healthcare facilities.

Beneficiaries: In particular, project beneficiaries will include those currently unable to work from home and those currently unable to school at home due to bandwidth constraints. The projects will bridge the digital divide in Maine and allow residents of these towns to participate in the digital economy.

Subrecipient: All members of the covered partnership are designated as co-applicants and will receive federal funding for this project. The ISPs, Consolidated Comm, Axiom Tech, and LCI Fiber Optic Network will deploy broadband networks in their designated service areas.

State Of Me Connectme Auth

11.031 - Broadband Infrastructure Program

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) [DOC]

Augusta, Maine 04333-0059 United States

Single Zip Code

None

COVID-19 $28,097,295 (100%) percent of this Project Grant was funded by COVID-19 emergency acts including the CARES Act.
Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 02/28/23 to 06/30/25.