Southern Vermont CUD fiber build will be completed in 2023

The Southern Vermont Communications Union District’s rollout of high-speed fiberoptic cable to Bennington County is entering its second year—and by fall 2023, the work will be done. Consolidated Communications, the firm contracted by the Southern Vermont CUD, ran ahead of schedule stringing cable in Bennington and Shaftsbury in 2022, and has started work in Manchester. A job that was anticipated to take as long as five years in the CUD’s 14 towns is now expected to be completed in a matter of months. How did that happen, when other CUDs had a head start on the Southern Vermont CUD? “Really, it’s our partnership with Consolidated,” said Southern Vermont CUD Board President Eric Hatch. “They have been an amazing partner. They’re very much interested in the same goal as the CUD.” Consolidated, for its part, said the Southern Vermont CUD’s cooperation was essential in making the quick pace of work possible. Overall, the investment is worth $27 million in private and public funds; which includes $9 million from the state through the Vermont Community Broadband program, as well as the federal Rural Development Opportunity Fund (RDOF) and the company's own investment in upgrading its fiber-optic network.