THE MEETING BETWEEN State Representative Paul Mark, the Hawley Selectboard, the Communications Committee and a group of Hawley residents that took place at the Town Office on November 19 was highly productive. After hearing a joint presentation on Communications Committee activities vis a vis Broadband by Lark Thwing and Rick Kean, Representative Mark focused his attention on two areas:
1.) The need for the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) to become more flexible in its requirements for a hybrid fiber-wireless network, regarding:
• system download and upload speeds; and,
• “ubiquity” in Broadband deployment.
2.) The request for Supplemental Funding by the “List of 18,” a group of Western Massachusetts Towns that are carrying an inordinately heavy burden of the costs of Broadband buildout and deployment under the current MBI plan. Twelve signed Letters of Support from participating Town Selectboards were presented to Mr. Mark at the meeting, plus a status update on the remaining six.
Rep. Mark acknowledged the need for fexibility and indicated he Continue reading
