What's Happening in Williamsburg, VA…

The end of the year will mark the beginning of a new service for one Williamsburg neighborhood.

Governor Ralph Northam distributed $30m that the state received from the CARES Act, and $192,023 went to the City of Williamsburg. The city will use the funds to provide free internet access and additional broadband services to Highland Park residents. The services will be free for six months, and the funds were created specifically to help support chronically underserved communities.

City leaders have been interested in increasing broadband access for some time, and thought of installing a citywide fiber network, but the cost was prohibitive. After that, officials contacted Verizon Wireless to see if the company could provide some type of wireless service that could be used to support internet in the city.

The need for such service was highlighted by remarks from Vickie Tyler, who is the Highland Park Civic Association's president, and a lifelong resident of the area. She said that many people in the neighborhood have difficulty getting access to the internet, if they achieve any connection at all.

Highland Park was chosen because it is close to cellular equipment, is a small area, and it will be easy to set up the service. Tyler said everyone was excited, and grateful to the community leader who fought to bring broadband to them. Flyer printing could be used to create a mailer for situations like this, explaining the service.