Kinetic is expanding its fiber buildout in Newton, Iowa, to cover the entire city. The Windstream business unit said that by the end of the year the more than 4,400 residences and businesses will have access to 1 Gbps service. About a year from now – late summer of 2022 – service will be rolled out to an additional 4,100 addresses. At that point, about 99% of the city will be covered.
The expanding Newton project is part of a concerted effort to bring service to Iowa. Kinetic currently is targeting 48 communities throughout the state with fiber upgrades. Windstream reports that activity will add 100 jobs to the state, which are part of a hiring spree of 1,000 new workers nationwide.
Windstream is partnering with the Vermeer Corp., which is headquartered in Pella, PA, for strategic construction supply services.
The Iowa project is part of a broader initiative by Windstream. The company is investing $2 billion to expand fiber-based gigabit capable network service across its 18-state footprint. It says that Newton is a “premium market” in Iowa for investment.
“Kinetic is a proud partner to the city and residents of Newton, and we are dedicated to delivering fast broadband speed at competitive rates with unmatched service,” Kinetic President Jeff Small said in a press release. “As this fiber is delivered, Newton more than ever will be able count on Kinetic for fast and reliable connections.”
Like many traditional telcos, large and small, Windstream is rapidly expanding its fiber footprint. Kinetic fiber announcements are becoming quite common. Less than a week ago, the company highlighted expanded fiber coverage in North Carolina.
Also this month, Arkansas tapped Windstream to bring fiber to 15K rural locations, using funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). That project has a total budget of close to $64 million.
