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Ritter Communications announces residential fiber build to bring thousands of homes online in Texarkana
Summary
Ritter Communications told the city council it plans to expand its 100% fiber residential service in Texarkana, targeting roughly 4,000 homes over the next 18 months and offering 1‑gig to 5‑gig tiers with clear pricing.
Mark McHale, vice president of public affairs and community relations for Ritter Communications, briefed the City Council on Aug. 26 about the company’s plans to expand 100% fiber residential broadband in Texarkana.
McHale said Ritter has been providing enterprise and business services in the Texarkana area since about 2018–2019 and is now preparing an accelerated build for residential customers. He said the company plans to bring service to roughly 4,000 homes starting in the fall of 2024 and continuing into late 2025, with more than half of that initial build on the Texas side of Texarkana.
Ritter described the offering as a full fiber‑to‑the‑home service with retail tiers including 1 gig (advertised at $80 per month) and a top tier of 5 gig (advertised at $120 per month). McHale said the company has been pursuing an “almost half a billion‑dollar” network expansion across its region over recent years and intends to accelerate investment in Texarkana.
McHale emphasized community outreach and coordination with city staff before construction begins, saying the company will notify neighborhoods months in advance of field activity to minimize surprise and to coordinate with public works and other city departments. He also said the company intends to prioritize underserved or unserved residential areas in its initial build phases.
Council members asked about geographic focus and the share of work directed to currently underserved residential areas; McHale said the rollout will be fairly widespread and that a high percentage of early work will target unserved or underserved neighborhoods. He said the company will follow permitting requirements and conduct outreach and communications prior to construction.
McHale framed the build as part of a local economic and quality‑of‑life improvement, noting applications such as telehealth, remote work and home learning that benefit from higher speeds. He closed by offering to work with city staff on permitting and community communications plans as the company advances design and permitting.
