Cayuga County committee approves commitment letter for $26.1 million CNY Net broadband award, contingent on financing

The Cayuga County Ways and Means Committee voted to authorize a commitment letter supporting a tentative $26,100,000 state award for the Central New York (CNY) Net broadband project and signaled willingness to provide interim financing, subject to final plan review and formal appropriation.

David Botar, executive director of the Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board, told the committee the application seeks to build about 275 miles of open‑access fiber — roughly 200 miles in Cayuga County and a little more than 50 miles in Cortland County — and that the project’s financing structure requires local interim funds because the state grant reimburses expenses. "The funding award ... is $26,100,000," Botar said, and described a request for $10,000,000 in interim financing split $7,000,000 for Cayuga County and $3,000,000 for Cortland County.

Botar said the state’s incentive proposal will require counties to document interim financing quickly. "We have to finish the engagement we have with ECC Technology for the technical design, the engineering design and then we will put it out for bid," he said, noting the project must be substantially complete by December 2026 to meet the federal/state funding window. He emphasized that the county’s financing would be repaid from grant reimbursements and that the state allows documented interest costs as eligible reimbursement when tied directly to the project.

Committee members repeatedly raised timing and cash‑flow concerns, and finance staff said short‑term borrowing was under discussion with fiscal advisers. Finance staff told the committee they expect reimbursement draws from the state over several installments and presented an illustrative three‑year cash‑flow schedule showing county money returned after final claims are approved.

The committee passed the commitment‑letter resolution with the caveat that any county financing would be subject to additional due diligence, review of final project plans, the state grant award and a separate appropriation by the full legislature. Cortland County’s parallel support was described as a necessary condition in the resolution. Next steps include receiving the state's final incentive proposal and, if terms remain consistent, bringing a formal appropriation resolution to the full legislature for consideration.

Supporters on the committee called the project a major regional economic‑development opportunity that would extend reliable broadband to unserved rural addresses and create open competition for service providers through an open‑access backbone. Skeptics asked for assurance about construction permits, maintenance responsibilities and precise cost estimates before committing county funds.