ITHACA, N.Y. — A multi-million dollar state grant will help more homes in Tompkins County gain access to broadband internet for the first time, according to an announcement from non-profit organization Southern Tier Network (STN) Tuesday. STN CEO Jeff Gasper said the project will provide a “100% fiber-based network” served by multiple internet service providers (ISPs) selling “a range of service plans” including more affordable plans and other higher-speed options for rural populations currently not served by internet companies. The funding is part of $18.2 million STN received through Empire State Development’s ConnectALL Municipal Infrastructure program, which is dedicated to funding buildouts of broadband infrastructure statewide. The total funding will connect over 4,000 homes and businesses, Gasper said, in Steuben, Schuyler, Chemung, Tioga and Tompkins Counties. The Tompkins County portion of the buildout is scheduled to begin some time in 2025 and finish closer to the end of 2026. “Approximately $2 million will be spent on the area of Tompkins County,” Gasper told The Ithaca Voice. Gasper said the funds will allow STN to further expand its existing fiber network in Tompkins County into the towns of Danby and Caroline, which have some of the largest gaps in broadband access in the county. In a 2023 analysis, county officials determined that about 1,200 households still have no access to broadband internet in Tompkins County, many of which were in the Brooktondale, Danby and Caroline areas. “Those benefiting from this project will receive fiber optic connections and high-speed symmetric service options for the first time,” the announcement states. “Southern Tier Network will partner with FiberSpark and other internet service providers to deliver high-speed connections at below average rates.” Gasper said the grant application was focused on areas where STN’s Middle Mile fiber-optic network could be feasibly utilized — in Tompkins County specifically, STN highlighted the areas that had been included in Tompkins County’s request for proposals for rural broadband services last year. Middle-mile networks can serve as the connection between the overall internet and smaller, local internet service providers. Larger companies may not want to incur the cost of providing service to rural areas where populations are far less dense, while smaller companies typically do not have the financial capability to do so on their own, leaving middle-mile networks as a key component in reducing the cost for companies to connect rural households while allowing residents a new opportunity for internet connection. The organization will draw on its pilot program in Nichols, N.Y., which he said has been successful with help from local governments there, including the Village of Nichols and Tioga County. Gasper also said STN is working with Dryden Fiber, the Town of Dryden’s municipally-owned broadband internet network, to “ensure synergies” and provide internet to the most currently-unserved households.The post State grant to bring $2 million for Tompkins County homes without broadband appeared first on The Ithaca Voice.First published by The Ithaca Voice.