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Broadband construction underway in Hanover; BrightSpeed and AllPoints report first homes lit and BEAD applications planned
Summary
County IT director and two internet providers told the Board the county's Connect Hanover build is under construction, several dozen to a few hundred homes are already serviceable, and providers plan BEAD/BED applications to reach remaining unserved locations.
Hanover County's broadband initiative has entered active construction, county staff and two providers said at the Board of Supervisors meeting.
Director of Information Technology Kevin Nelson said AllPoints and BrightSpeed are building fiber in multiple areas of the county and that GloFiber has completed a first phase of suburban expansion. He also announced that additional state make‑ready funds were secured to help accelerate pole and conduit work. "Construction is underway," Nelson told the board, and he said both AllPoints and Comcast plan to apply for federal/state BED/BEAD funds to cover the remaining unserved locations.
BrightSpeed's Chris Dillon said the company had service available "to roughly 250 to 300 homes" in Hanover as of the update and that crews are expanding build teams to accelerate work; he said Beaver Dam and Montpelier areas are in active construction and that the contractor Lambert’s has crews on the ground. "As of yesterday, we have service being able to be provided to 70 homes within the Beaver Dam area," Dillon said.
AllPoints said its build is advancing on an east‑to‑west schedule and that splicing and cabinet work are critical milestones for activating first customers; it plans initial customer activations in late February for early cabinet areas. AllPoints confirmed the company will submit a BEAD/BED application and that the county's support for such applications is an important scoring factor.
Why it matters: the county has a mix of providers working under different programs. Providers said they are offering no long‑drop fees for customers who sign up within the first year after their local service area is activated, meaning household connections off the road will be included for early sign‑ups.
BEAD/BED and make‑ready: Nelson and contractors described recent state make‑ready awards (nearly $3 million plus AllPoints contributions) to help cover costly pole and conduit work; AllPoints and BrightSpeed emphasized permitting and utility make‑ready as the primary gating items. AllPoints said the state will submit BEAD/BED plans in July after March 1 application windows close, and that the federal review will follow.
What residents should watch for: providers are sending mailers and door hangers, and they urged residents to register on the providers' sites to receive notifications when sales open in their neighborhood. Both companies said crews will continue to build through the year with phased activations and that the county will maintain weekly progress coordination with providers.
Ending: county staff said the initiative is entering an execution phase, with crews building and first customer activations imminent in targeted service areas; providers urged residents to sign up for notifications to be eligible for early‑connection terms.
