Nearly 500 homes and businesses in Cumberland County will get access for the first time to high-speed internet under a growing state broadband expansion program.
The N.C. Department of Information Technology (NCDIT) announced the expansion on April 1.
The connections will provide an average download and upload speed of 1,000 Mbps, the county said in an announcement Friday. The cost of installation in Cumberland County is $2.7 million, and internet providers and the federal government pay for the expansion. The connections are being provided by Connect Holding II LLC, formerly known as Brightspeed.
Cumberland County’s expansion is part of the $31 million Completing Access to Broadband (CAB) program, which is designed to connect 10,810 households and businesses to high-speed internet in 14 counties across the state. CAB is run by the NCDIT.
The 496 homes and businesses that will receive connections represent approximately 60% of the county’s 817 eligible locations under the CAB program.
“Expanding broadband infrastructure to underserved areas is a critical component of our vision for Cumberland County’s growth and development,” said Kirk deViere, chair of the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners. “This partnership will not only connect hundreds of households and businesses to high-speed internet, but it will also support our broader goals of encouraging smart, sustainable growth and improving access to essential services for all residents.”
This is the second round of CAB funding for projects in Cumberland County. In July 2024, NCDIT announced two awards for projects by Connect Holding II and StarVision, which will have a total project cost of approximately $6.9 million and provide high-speed internet access to 1,692 locations. The county is also partnering with NCDIT and Brightspeed on a $3.2 million GREAT grant project proposed to provide broadband access to 758 households and businesses.
Other counties receiving CAB funds are Avery, Beaufort, Buncombe, Dare, Hyde, Jones, Nash, Pamlico, Pasquotank, Swain, Transylvania, Wake and Yancey.
The CAB program’s procurement process creates a partnership between counties and NCDIT to identify areas that need access and solicit proposals from prequalified internet service providers. The selected internet providers must agree to provide high-speed service that reliably meets or exceeds speeds of 100 Mbps download and 100 Mbps upload.
The awards add to the $516 million in Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology grants and previous CAB projects that will connect close to 190,000 North Carolina households and businesses to high-speed internet. For additional information, visit the state broadband expansion website.