No More Dead “Spots” In the Virginia “Wilderness”

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Last Thursday, officials stood under a 300-foot cell tower in Spotsylvania and unveiled rural Virginia’s first 5G service, reported the Culpeper Star-Exponent. U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a leader of broadband issues, announced Data Stream Broadband’s 5G network, which will provide an “urban broadband experience to rural communities.”

Spanberger said, “It’s exactly what these federal investments are supposed to assist in making a reality. My hat’s off to supervisors who recognized the opportunity and jumped on it.”

The federal CARES Act provided funds for the project, a collaboration between “government and industry.” The new service is available to 400 households in the Wilderness and Belmont communities, with plans for expansion, according to the Star-Exponent.  

Spotsylvania Board of Supervisors Chairman Kevin Marshall noted how difficult it has been for school-aged children to access the internet in rural Spotsylvania since the onset of the pandemic. Marshall said he was heartened by Data Stream’s arrival in Spotsylvania and its 5G service.

“By no means is it going to fix all of our problems, but we’re going to be a lot farther down the road and be able to provide a lot more service to a lot more citizens in the county,” he said. “That’s huge for us.”

According to Data Stream Broadband President and CEO Sean Lee, Ericsson provided state-of-the-art equipment (Massive MIMO radios) so customers will benefit from the latest 5G technology. The Star-Exponent reported that Ericsson antennas were installed atop the Lake Wilderness cell tower. 

“Now, school kids and business people and community members are going to have the same access—because of this tower and this connectivity—that people in other parts of the region already have,” added Spanberger.

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