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Spectrum completes county-funded broadband build; activates 414 addresses, county leaders briefed on next rounds
Summary
Spectrum representatives told the Portage County Board of Commissioners that a county-funded broadband build is complete, with 414 addresses activated, about 48.2 miles of fiber laid and an invoice of $1,107,228; officials and the company discussed pole delays, make-ready work and state grant rounds that could extend coverage.
Spectrum representatives updated the Portage County Board of Commissioners on the closeout of a county-funded broadband project, saying the company activated 414 addresses and laid roughly 48.2 miles of fiber in areas the county funded.
The presentation matters because it completes a county-funded effort to bring fiber-to-the-premises service into parts of Portage County with limited or no wired Internet options and because company and county staff described how remaining delays on other broadband projects are being handled.
Sandra, Spectrum government-affairs director, told commissioners the “projected field completion date was on 03/28/2025, which we did complete.” She said the build activated 414 addresses and the company laid 48.2 route miles; the invoice sent to the county for the Portage-funded project was $1,107,228.
Sean, Spectrum’s construction manager, and Sandra said the project added some “synergy” addresses encountered on route that were not in the initial address list, which increased the connection count above projected totals. County staff and Spectrum also discussed transmission technology: the build is fiber to the premises rather than fixed wireless or coax, meaning fiber was taken all the way to homes on this project.
Company representatives and county staff described delays and technical challenges that affected other connected projects. They said pole-owner make-ready work — requests to replace or upgrade poles and rearrange attachments — slowed parts of the statewide rollout and led Spectrum to place some lines underground where pole access was delayed. Sandra said those pole issues lengthened timelines and that utilities have an application backlog that has affected many builds across Ohio.
The Spectrum team briefed commissioners on follow-on funding and statewide efforts: they said the company is working on a second round of state grants and other federally funded programs that could bring additional passings to the county in 2026. Sandra told the board the combined group projects (Portage alongside neighboring counties) are estimated to cost roughly $15.3 million, though she said the county-specific award amount with the state had not yet been finalized.
Commissioners asked about customer complaints and operational issues. Spectrum representatives said they had not received substantive service complaints beyond typical damage claims from underground work, and they described planned network upgrades (“High Split”) that will enable symmetrical multi‑gigabit speeds over time.
County staff requested a written recap of outstanding issues for the Marks tower and other sites that remain delayed by separate state easements or vendor equipment coordination. County and Spectrum staff said they would continue coordinating on the state grant rounds and remaining tower and backhaul items.
The presentation closed with Spectrum offering contact information for constituent follow-up and with county staff noting the project as a completed portion of the county-funded broadband program while additional state-funded phases remain in planning and design.
