For the last three years, the One Sumter Economic Development Foundation and its partners have worked to address the challenges of providing affordable high speed internet to the businesses of its hometown community of Americus and Sumter County. Working with Georgia-based consulting company Civitium to identify the feasibility of providing access of one gigabyte of service at a reasonable and affordable rate, One Sumter will announce the fruits of that labor and investment on Tuesday, August 7, 2018, at 706 East Jefferson Street in Americus.
During its three years of analysis, One Sumter has evaluated multiple possible solutions to the rural broadband challenge faced by so many communities in Georgia, looking at issues of reliability, redundancy and capacity. With the support of Civitium, the Broadband Feasibility Committee, consisting of support from Sumter EMC and Georgia Power Company, conducted many meetings with area businesses and engaged existing service providers to share the feedback and proposals for expanded service. Throughout the process, a larger Broadband Stakeholder Group, comprised of 20 individuals representing diverse business interests, provided input, review and advice.
“We are excited to be able to make this announcement,” states One Sumter Economic Development Foundation Chairman, Alex Saratsiotis. “When we launched One Sumter in 2014, the issue of broadband and the ability to provide quality, high speed fiber connectivity at an affordable rate was of the utmost importance to our donors. It’s probably the issue we continue to get the most questions about, and although it has taken a little longer than we anticipated, the announcement next week is the fulfillment of a commitment we made to our donors and our community. We simply cannot thank our partners and investors enough for their continued support.”
Rene Smith, Senior Vice President of Operations at Sumter EMC and One Sumter Board member, has long been an advocate for the critical need of rural broadband to facilitate economic development. Through Sumter EMC’s efforts and the partnership with Georgia Power, One Sumter is proud to serve as a model of how community partnership, collaboration and determination can solve a difficult public challenge without the investment of tax payers’ money. “Our EMC has always had a goal of enabling economic development in the communities we serve and our involvement with One Sumter furthers this goal,” states Smith.
One Sumter Executive Director Mary Beth Bass adds, “We are thrilled about what this announcement will mean for our business community. To be competitive for new and expanding industry, we knew this was a challenge we had to find a solution for—at a time where the entire state is focused on issues of rural importance and growth, it is exciting to think that Sumter County can be at the front of that conversation.”
Bass continues, “The announcement on August 7 is the celebration of a community working together to tackle its own needs. Through the investment of our donors, we have a powerful story to tell, and we look forward to sharing that with our partners and stakeholders who made this all possible.”
The Fiber Connectivity Announcement and Groundbreaking Ceremony is hosted by the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce on behalf of the One Sumter Economic Development Foundation. The public is invited and encouraged to attend.
One Sumter is a partnership between the Sumter County Payroll Development Authority and the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce, dedicated to enhancing and supporting the community’s economic and workforce development efforts. A non-profit, 501 (c) 3 charitable organization, One Sumter supports work within four key focus areas: 1) Economic Development, 2) Workforce Development, 3) Marketing & Communications, and 4) Transportation. A five-year capital campaign effort, One Sumter is supported by over 100 donors representing business and industry, educational institutions, local government, and the contributions of private individuals who have invested in the vision for future growth. Collections from investors are anticipated to continue through 2019.
For more information about One Sumter and its initiatives, or to contribute through volunteerism or financially, please contact Executive Director Mary Beth Bass at (229) 924-3042 or at marybeth@onesumter.org. You may also visit One Sumter online at www.onesumter.org and www.facebook.com/OneSumter.