Federal, state and local officials came together for the groundbreaking ceremony for Micrologic’s $20 million Randolph County Fiber Broadband Project Wednesday morning.
The ceremony, which took place at 1300 Harrison Ave., the future location for Micrologic’s Randolph branch, included representatives from local, state and federal governments, including Sen. Shelley Moore Capito. R-W.Va.
“We have an opportunity here, really, to never have another meeting like this,” Capito said during her remarks at Wednesday’s ceremony. “Because I’m thinking, we can connect everybody. We can connect everybody, we can connect every business, every school. We can connect anywhere, anytime, any place. And the days of having a groundbreaking because we’re getting broadband will be a thing of the past.”
Officials said Micrologic’s initiative is set to bring high-speed fiber connectivity to 10,000 locations within Randolph County.
Robbie Morris, executive director of the Randolph County Development Authority (RCDA), welcomed everyone to the event Wednesday morning.
“We are here today to celebrate the start of a project that will significantly expand broadband service throughout much of Randolph County,” Morris said. “Let me assure you, today is the start of an even brighter future.”
An Upshur County-based company, Micrologic is a full-service voice and data cabling business that has been operating for more than 30 years. According to Micrologic’s website, the company provides “a wide range of high quality solutions and services to companies throughout West Virginia and surrounding states. We pride ourselves in never saying no to a tough problem that needs to be solved.”
Micrologic has been awarded funds from the West Virginia Department of Economic Development, Office of Broadband (WVDED) to expand service to thousands of targeted Randolph County addresses. In 2022, the Randolph County Fiber Broadband Project received $13,977,410 in project funds from the Major Broadband Project Strategies Program (MBPS).
According to the WVDED Office of Broadband website, in 2022 the Randolph County Fiber Broadband Project was expected to cover an estimated 282 in fiber mileage and would affect around 3,991 targeted addresses in Randolph County.
“This area is quickly becoming ground zero for technology advancement and infrastructure,” Mitch Carmichael, the Cabinet Secretary of the West Virginia Department of Economic Development, said during his remarks Wednesday. “There’s nothing more important than the connectivity and broadband deployment to economic development writ large in West Virginia, and that is occurring in our state in leaps and bounds.”
During his speech, Micrologic President Rob Hilton spoke on how the company’s partnership with the RCDA, the City of Elkins, Randolph County and the Randolph County Commission far exceeds any other partnership the company has had in other communities to date.
He also said these partnerships are why Micrologic plans to expand beyond the initial number of targeted addresses affected.
“It’s a reason why we’re going to continue to make investments into your community,” Hilton said. “This project will pass 4,000, will hook-up 4,000 (targeted addresses), but Micrologic’s making commitments to pass locations in the 10,000 range. We are going to continue to invest our own capital into Elkins and Randolph County.”
The ceremony also included speeches from Elkins Mayor Jerry Marco; Randolph County Commissioner David Kesling; Lynn Phillips, a representative of Gov. Jim Justice; and Wendy Madden, a representative of Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va.; and Rhett Dusenbury, field representative for Congressman Alex Mooney, R-2nd District.