Madison County ReConnect Project

December 12, 2023 Justin Zagorski

On November 3, 2023, Madison County held a hut placement ceremony in the Town of Sullivan. Construction of the 269 mile long fiber optic network is officially underway.

ECC was proud to take part in this ceremony!

Project Highlights

The Madison County ReConnect Project is funded by a USDA Rural Development ReConnect Grant for construction of a capable fiber optic broadband network, leased to Empire Access to reach unserved/underserved homes, businesses, and farms in the County.

In July 2021, Madison County was one of two New York State projects awarded the Grant, awarded $10.1 million.
In September 2023, USDA provided supplemental funding for the project. The total project now stands to cost $18,639,100.
The initial build out of the broadband to the Proposed Funded Service Areas (PFSA) will connect 1,087 households, 50 farms, and 30 businesses to high-speed broadband. To serve these areas, lines will be run in almost a circle through the County. The plan is after the initial build-out, Empire Access will be able to provide service to communities along that route, and be a major competitor to existing providers.

ECC and Madison County

Project Background:

In 2019, Madison County, through a competitive bid process, contracted with ECC Technologies, Inc. to perform a county wide broadband analysis including a broadband infrastructure field inventory, broadband availability, and adoption survey of county residents to identify key locations in the county that were lacking in infrastructure and had broadband availability and adoption issues. From this study, a network solution was defined, and a business plan was compiled.

ECC was then hired by the County to assist in seeking out and developing a public private partnership between the County and a last mile internet provider. ECC identified, Empire Access, a local provider of fiber to the home internet, voice, and television services as a possible candidate. ECC was successful in developing a partnership between Madison County and Empire Access. Madison County with Empire Access and ECC created and submitted a USDA ReConnect Grant application. The ReConnect Grant was awarded to Madison County in 2021 to construct a 269-mile fiber to the home network.

What ECC will be doing today:

ECC Technologies, Inc. will act as the County’s advocate to oversee the ReConnect Project, over a three year period, to ensure the project proceeds according to plan and within budget. This entails several key processes:

1. Project Scheduling and Review: On behalf of the County, ECC Technologies, Inc. will work with the PE firm to develop and maintain a project schedule which will work within the key milestones schedule required by RUS for compliance with grant funding.

2. Contract Negotiation Support

Support for Professional Engineer Selection
Evaluate and Recommend Selection of the Construction Contractor
Support the development of the contract between Madison County and Empire

3. Budget Tracking and Reporting: On behalf of Madison County, ECC will work with the County financial experts providing technical assistance and budget tracking support regarding the project as needed. This may include:

Assist with Required USDA Reporting and Submissions
RUS Balance Sheets
Income Statements
Statements of Cash Flow
Budget

4. Technology Consultant for Network Design, Proposed Technology and Broadband Services:

Document Review, Total Project Cost Estimate & Quality Review
System Inspection
Verify Contractor Application for Payment
Quality Inspection
Review of System Test Data

5. USDA/Public Service Commission Liaison – ECC will work on behalf of the County as liaison with USDA, responding to questions and seeking clarification on behalf of the County. In addition, ECC will identify a list of required licenses and regulatory approvals needed for the proposed project

PFSA's (Proposed Funded Service Areas):

The Proposed Funded Service Area (PFSA) of the Project are the areas that were approved by USDA for build-out using the Grant monies. See the map above of the current PFSA's.
- To find out if service will be available in your area, go to Empire Access's map at this link: https://www.empireaccess.com/check-availability/. The areas shaded in yellow are in Madison County. You can also type in your address.
There are very specific definitions of what addresses and locations can and cannot be included.
- Unserved / underserved is defined as <10Mbps download and <1Mbps upload.
- It cannot be in an area that previously received Grant monies (state or federal).
- 90% of the premises in the area must be unserved/underserved to be included.