Vina to receive broadband

VINA – At a partnership recognition ceremony on Thursday, officials met to celebrate the grant that will benefit the town of Vina by allowing the town to make advances in technology that will make the town more marketable to business and industry.

The United States Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development division awarded the $570,800 Community Connect grant to R & S Communications so the company can provide broadband services in the town of Vina – something USDA Rural Development’s state director, Ronald W. Davis, said is long overdue.

“The good thing about living in a community like Vina is the ability to be connected to each other,” Davis said. “Vina is no different than any other rural community – you want to expand. May rural communities in Alabama are underserved in the area of broadband services but that is something we hope to change so that everyone can have the same equal opportunities.”

The grant will also provide for 10 computers to be placed at the Vina Community Center for public use and for the facility to be staffed for up to two years.

“I can bet that within 12 months, this opportunity [to have broadband service] will change something in this community,” Davis said. “It’s always amazing how people in a small community can better themselves, especially when they have the tools to do so.”

In August, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the USDA would award $103 million to fund 23 different projects through the Community Connect program, which provides grants to rural or economically challenged communities.

Vina was the first town in the state of Alabama to receive one of these grants.

“This program is great because it gives small towns like Vina more opportunities and it helps open doors for everyone in the community,” said Teresa Hunkapiller, general field representative for USDA Rural Development’s Telecommunications division.

Davis also pointed out the importance of broadband service when it comes to marketing the area for industry, which the town hopes to attract with the speculative building that is being constructed in the Vina Industrial Park.

“Growth is dependent on how we sell ourselves,” Davis said. “Most major companies cannot function without broadband service so this will be a great marketing tool in that area.”

Richard Beesmer, president and CEO of R & S Communications agreed.

“Broadband service can be a real game changer for businesses,” Beesmer said. “We are excited for the town of Vina and I appreciate all the support our company has already received from Mayor Franklin and Sue Raper.”

Franklin County Sheriff Shannon Oliver said he was glad Vina would be connected with the rest of the county.

“When I ran for office, one of the things I wanted to do was set up a website to keep the county informed, but I was told I would have to use high-speed Internet to be able to download the pictures and things we needed for the site,” he said. “This news made me sad because I knew Vina would be left out and I hated that because this is a good community with good people.

“This grant is a great thing because it means you won’t be left out anymore.”

Even locally, the addition of broadband in Vina will help businesses and individuals with their day-to-day activities and jobs.

Lowell Humphries is a retired English teacher from Vina who, with his wife, sponsors a child care food program through USDA.

“I’ve had to maintain an office for that program in Red Bay because the Internet service was faster,” he said. “I’ve been to third world countries where you can only access the town one week out of the year during the dry season and they have perfect Internet and cell phone connections. Then I come home to Vina and there’s not a bar of service.

“This grant will really help the area and we definitely needed it.”

Sue Raper, Vina’s town clerk, said the grant will help in other areas as well like with the schools, the town’s government and with law enforcement and fire and rescue.

“I can’t tell you how excited I am about this,” Raper said. “This means so much to our town and we’re really going to grow.”