Habersham commissioners approve amended Windstream build agreement, pledge support for expanded broadband

Josh Baker, operations manager for Windstream, told the Habersham County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 27 that Windstream is expanding fiber in the county and asked the board for a letter of support to pursue federal funding.

Baker said Windstream has invested in local infrastructure and is seeking backing to pursue the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. He described a completed portion of the project — “We have completed over 146 miles of fiber” — and said another 117 miles remain. He asked commissioners to provide a letter of support so Windstream can apply for additional federal funding that would extend service to about 1,600 locations the company considers unserved or underserved.

The request came as the board considered a housekeeping amendment to an existing public–private partnership agreement tied to a Georgia State Fiscal Recovery Fund award administered under state grant terms. Interim County Manager Tim Sims told the board a federal amendment restructured the grant from a reimbursable award with a required match into a fixed award; the change removes the match component from the grant’s federal terms, but Windstream remains responsible for delivering the project as proposed. Sims said the award amount increased in the restructuring.

Commissioners voted to approve the amended build agreement and to provide documentation the grant administrator requires for audit purposes. The motion passed with the board’s verbal affirmation; the minutes record the board’s approval without a recorded roll-call tally in the transcript.

Why it matters: commissioners and Windstream framed the change as procedural for state and federal accounting, not a change to the county’s responsibilities. The amendment clarifies auditing and award structure and preserves Windstream’s responsibility to complete the expansion under its bid and design.

Details from the record: Baker said Windstream’s regional footprint in Georgia serves about 24,000 customer locations in Habersham County and that the company earlier reported an investment of $3,250,000 alongside a state contribution noted during his presentation (transcript figures). County staff later described the federal/state grant restructuring as increasing the awarded amount from the previously communicated figure of about $5.6 million to roughly $6.2 million, with Windstream remaining responsible for any additional project costs beyond the award.

The county will include the amendment and the board’s agreement in the meeting minutes and in the county’s grant files to meet audit requirements.