BUCKHANNON – The executive director of the Upshur County Development Authority is rounding up letters of support to help Micrologic run fiber through and around their existing tower structure.

Upshur County Development Authority executive director Jennifer Bostian attended the Jan. 6 Upshur County Commission meeting to request a letter of approval from the commission.

“As you all know, the UCDA has worked on multiple tower projects for broadband coverage across Upshur County, so I am approaching you for a letter of support for a grant that Micrologic will be submitting to the state’s Department of Development in their Major Broadband Strategies Program to run fiber through and around the existing tower structure within Upshur County,” Bostian said.

She said adding fiber to towers in Upshur County will help move the county forward. Fiber internet transmits data via fiberoptic cables to increase internet speeds as opposed to traditional copper-cable broadband internet.

“We really need to move into fiber to get us to the economic development benefit we really need here, so I’m here today asking for letters of support, and I’ll be approaching all the various community groups,” Bostian said. “This grant was headed by Micrologic and we’re providing support to them because they are an important community partner headquartered here in Upshur County, and I think this will be another step for our strategy to get fiber through Upshur County, so I would like to request formally a letter of support for this grant, from the county commission.”

This grant will add fiber to all the existing towers around Upshur County.

“There’s some more funding coming down the road that the UCDA will request to get us more out into the residential areas into specific addresses,” Bostian said.  

She said there would most likely be a year-long delay if Micrologic receives the grant and then they should be able to tie in their towers.

Since Bostian’s request was not on the agenda for the Jan. 6 meeting, the commission voted to return to the matter during the Jan. 13 Upshur County Commission meeting. Bostian said she would need the letter by Jan. 21.