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River Street signs BEAD agreement; targets phased activations starting Q4 2026
Summary
River Street Networks told the Board it signed the BEAD agreement May 22, expanded the project to roughly 9,337 locations under a $59.5 million scope, and expects phased service with 3,565 locations ready by year-end 2026; first customer activations for some county routes are projected early-to-mid 2027.
River Street Networks updated Patrick County officials on May 26 about an expanded VATI/BEAD deployment that increased the project scope to roughly 9,337 locations and a regional value of $59.5 million. "River Street officially signed the BEAD program agreement with the Commonwealth on Friday, May 22, 2026," Greg Coltrain told the board.
Coltrain said the county-level high‑level blueprint is complete and low-level design, Lidar surveys, field walkouts, and splicing lists are in progress. He described a phased rollout that will mirror AEP's backbone handovers and said River Street expects 3,565 locations ready for service by the end of 2026 (2,123 from VATI 2022 and 1,442 from VATI 2023), with the first customer activations for some Stuart-Floyd-Elamsville route areas projected for early-to-mid 2027 after local splicing and electronics deployment.
Board members raised concerns about worst-case timelines shown in regional dashboards that extended completions into 2028. Coltrain characterized those dates as worst-case and said River Street is prepared to mobilize crews within two to three weeks after AEP route handover. He also confirmed the company is pursuing ARPA and grant-extension filings to avoid fund expirations and that Patrick County's local match is approximately $1 million. Coltrain emphasized that while the contract with the state is signed, project execution depends on coordinated testing, permitting, and securing required matching funds.
