Connect Champ County update: presenters report 93 backbone easements, hookups expected in September–October

Vololo and contractor Finley told the Champaign County Broadband Task Force that the Connect Champ County broadband build is progressing and that the team has reduced the number of backbone easements it needs to obtain to 93.

Peter, a Vololo representative, said the project has “spent about 3.5 million total of the funds,” and that the team expects to add roughly $3 million more over the next two months and an additional $3 million in June and July for materials and procurement. He said materials for Phase 1 are in hand and materials for Phase 2A are expected to be ordered within 30 days and largely available by the end of July.

“The legal processes that we’re working through have fixed time frames on them,” Peter said, describing a streamlined approach the team developed after lessons from Phase 1. He added that the project has intensified public outreach—including mailers, in-person events and door-to-door visits—and plans to complete outreach to Phase 2A property owners by the end of July.

Andy Hines of Finley, identified in the update as the Finley lead, told the task force that the largest practical roadblock to steady construction is moving easements and permits through local processes: “the largest roadblock … is moving through that easement and permitting process to make sure … we have as much clean running for contractors as possible,” he said.

Project counts presented to the task force were: about 596 premises passed in Phase 1; roughly 300 premises on the Phase 2A backbone; and a range of estimates for the non-backbone portion of Phase 2A that were discussed in the meeting that resulted in an approximate 1,250 total for Phase 2A. Vololo said Phase 2B would add roughly another 1,200 premises in Champaign County and may extend into adjacent Vermillion County if awarded BEAD funding.

On timing, Vololo said Phase 1 hookups could start in September and Phase 2A backbone hookups shortly thereafter in October once fiber is spliced and service turned up. The presenters said sign-up timing for customers depends on residents and that not all customers immediately connect when service becomes available.

Task force members pressed for practical budgeting and schedule transparency, asking Vololo for a simplified Gantt-style schedule and a clearer mapping of monthly burn rates (for example, what a $260,000 August spend corresponds to in feet of duct or other deliverables). Peter and Finley said they can provide a simplified construction schedule and more direct mapping of spend to deliverable so the county can monitor progress against expenditures.

On legal risk, Vololo said it is using quick-take mechanisms where appropriate so construction can proceed while disputes over compensation are litigated; the team also said some easements may still go to litigation but that the number is expected to be small. Vololo reported appraisals for backbone parcels are ordered and expected to be completed by July 15.

Next steps identified during the meeting included providing the task force with a simplified construction schedule and spend-to-deliver accounting, completing appraisals by the stated deadline, continuing phone and door-to-door outreach through July, and preparing to begin customer hookups in September and October if permitting and easement timelines remain on track. The task force adjourned after the update.