County broadband rollout nears completion in rural passings; AllPoints connections rising

Deputy County Administrator Todd Kilduff provided the board an update on the Connect Hanover broadband initiative and contractor deployments. Kilduff reported AllPoints Broadband continues to make rural passings active (about 6,198 rural passings in the county) and said customer connections rose from approximately 1,222 in June to about 1,371 as of the most recent update.

Kilduff described implementation hurdles that remain: private-road access and railroad crossings require additional permitting and coordination, and staff are working case by case to resolve easements and railroad approvals. He also noted that the Federal-State BEAD awards and state-contracted projects will add thousands of additional passings for Hanover in coming years (Kilduff cited an estimate of about 3,525 BEAD passings when that work is complete). Kilduff said AllPoints increased speeds at no extra cost for certain tiers and that the county is posting continuous updates on its website to inform residents about timing and availability.

Board members thanked staff and said they will continue to monitor coordination with other providers and VDOT where roadway or permitting impacts occur.