Updated
Updated · Shaw Local News Network · May 31
Fox Fiber Launches Kendall Broadband Plan for 15,000 Sites With $46 Million in Bonds and Grants
Updated
Updated · Shaw Local News Network · May 31

Fox Fiber Launches Kendall Broadband Plan for 15,000 Sites With $46 Million in Bonds and Grants

1 articles · Updated · Shaw Local News Network · May 31

Summary

  • Fox Fiber has formally launched the Kendall County Broadband Initiative, a community-owned fiber and wireless network aimed at about 15,000 homes, businesses, farms and public institutions in unserved and underserved areas.
  • The rollout starts with a first phase passing roughly 4,700 addresses in Lisbon, Millbrook, Millington, Montgomery, Newark, Oswego, Plattville and Yorkville.
  • About $31 million in tax-exempt bonds and a $15 million Illinois Office of Broadband grant will fund the buildout, which organizers said will add no tax burden on residents and instead be sustained by network revenue.
  • The launch also folds NewarkNet into Fox Fiber and advances a project the county backed last September, when Kendall County selected Denver-based Pivot-Tech Development as its construction partner.
  • County officials and Pivot-Tech are framing the effort as locally governed infrastructure that could become a model for other communities seeking broadband service where private providers have fallen short.

Insights

Can this new network meet the massive digital demands of Kendall County's future, including a new data center?
With federal broadband funds for Illinois stalled, can this local model succeed on its own?
Can a community-owned network truly outperform private internet providers in the long run?