Columbiana Co. moves closer to Internet upgrade

By D.a. Wilkinson

The proposal could provide wireless Internet service for most of the county.

LEETONIA — Tracy Drake, the chief executive officer of the Columbiana County Port Authority, said Friday that the county could have wireless Internet service by the end of this year.

A tentative agreement was reached through DRS, which operates from the port’s industrial park in Leetonia. It handles the fiber-optic cables that connect schools in Columbiana and Mahoning counties.

Drake said that a tentative agreement has been made with Omnicity Corp., which is based in Indiana.

Omnicity’s Web site bills itself as “fast, cheap and always turned on.”

The company also states that Omnicity offers high-speed Internet home service at dial-up prices.

Bringing service to rural areas is what the company does, Drake said.

“I’m hoping this will be the last phase of the fiber access from schools going out into towns,” he said.

The four towers that can handle wireless Internet in the county will be linked to four more towers.

Those eight towers, Drake said, should be able to reach 80 percent of the county, “or a little bit more,” Drake said.

In today’s business market, Drake added, “If you can’t get good Internet service, you’re back in the primitive age.”

The county commissioners have been supporting the Connect Ohio project, which also wants to expand wireless Internet in rural areas.

The U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have $4.8 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants and loans to expand broadband access. Drake said that Connect Ohio has a good staff but not enough money.

The county commissioners recently reaffirmed their support for the Connect Ohio project.

Commissioner Jim Hoppel said that supporting the Connect Ohio program was just another effort to try to bring wireless Internet to the county.

wilkinson@vindy.com