A $580,000 Windstream public–private partnership in Throckmorton, Texas has the provider’s Kinetic gigabit fiber broadband service available to public schools and 650 homes and business in the small city.
The bulk of the financing – $420,000 – is being provided by Windstream. The balance is coming from the Throckmorton Collegiate Independent School District’s operating budget ($20,000), the city of Throckmorton ($70,000) and Throckmorton County ($70,000). The city and county contributions are from the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds program (SLFRF).
According to Windstream, the school district is the first in the state to fund broadband construction. The project features more than 60,000 feet of fiber that will link optical equipment to the school district, and local homes and businesses. The Throckmorton project is part of Windstream’s $2 billion multiyear capital investment to expand gigabit fiber service throughout its 18-state operating region.
“We’re thrilled to bring our fastest speeds and our best internet experience to homes, businesses and public schools here in Throckmorton,” Kinetic state operations president Danny Ferguson said in a prepared statement about the Windstream public-private partnership. “Everyone in Throckmorton deserves exceptional internet, and we’re proud to bring our fiber connectivity to more and more customers to meet their evolving needs for business, personal and educational use.”
In April, Windstream announced that about 1,700 homes and businesses in the Texas city of Andrews, located in the southwestern part of the state, soon will have access to broadband service. The company said that it would enfranchise these addresses by expanding on an already existing Windstream network.
Windstream has been leveraging public-private partnerships to help spur broadband deployments in numerous states, including Georgia and Pennsylvania, as well as Texas.
