Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

This report addresses a number of topics within the rural broadband field. Initially, the report presents a county-wide analysis of incumbent providers and broadband service in Albemarle. It highlights various system-level issues that create obstacles for broadband expansion in the county while exploring the broadband-business nexus of economic development. The latter half of the report presents solutions proposed by stakeholders in the central Virginia region, along with a number of alternatives to active solutions. From there, the report hypothesizes about barriers the county may face in future expansion and the role the Albemarle County Government and the University of Virginia will need to fulfill in order to overcome these barriers. Finally, the report touches on the future of 5G in Albemarle county and lays out a number of recommendations to the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors.

The report will address the geographic, governance, and economic profile of the County and work to integrate these factors into developing a high-level view of the current state of broadband. The county is unique in its placement, current initiatives, and demographics. In early 2016, Albemarle County was awarded a grant from the Virginia Telecommunications Planning Initiative to develop a community telecommunications plan and gather input from outside, expert sources. The Board of Supervisors established a “broadband taskforce” assessed the current telecommunications network in Albemarle and developed a strategic plan for the board. This plan brought forward a number of recommendations to the board and led to the eventual creation of the Albemarle Broadband Authority (ABBA) to lead broadband issues.

Since its inception, ABBA has worked to understand the problem plaguing the county and has used the aforementioned VATI grants to become deployment work. However, the wealth disparity and large differences in population density continue to negatively impact deployment and measurement efforts. No solution provided at the national level can reflect the various challenges, differences, and unique qualities of any individual community. Even within the community, ABBA must provide solutions that serve the best interest of every individual town and citizen of Albemarle County, no matter their lifestyle. Even the most local solutions are not one-size-fits-all and there will always be a contradiction to the conclusions reached by any level of government. Ultimately, this report will work to understand ABBA’s mission to, “extend affordable broadband internet service access to every customer in Albemarle county” and analyze the impact of full fiber-to-the-home within the next decade for Albemarle County, VA. [1]

[1]Albemarle Broadband Authority, ABBA Goals and Principles, Albemarle County, VA: Albemarle County Government, 2017. Web, http://www.albemarle.org/upload/images/forms_center/departments/Broadband/forms/ABBA%20Goals%20and%20Principles.pdf (April 2019).