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During its regular meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 19, the Carroll County Quorum Court heard from Rodney Ballance, a Berryville resident and owner of Berryville Broadband, about his plans to improve internet connectivity in the county.
Speaking during the segment of the meeting designated for public comments, Ballance asked the county’s 11 justices of the peace to sign a form authorizing his company to apply for grant funding to provide fiber-optic cable to unserved and underserved homes and businesses in the county.
Ballance said there are 3,422 such locations in Carroll County, based on a study conducted earlier this year.
“That’s over 6,000 people in Carroll County who don’t have access to telemedicine,” Ballance said. “Can’t access the internet at home for schoolwork. That can’t get online to apply for or do video conferencing for better jobs or for their employment as a whole. They can’t get a GED or further their education because they don’t have the capability of high-speed internet.”
Ballance said he needed signatures from five county officials in order to apply for grant funding.
“So I’m here asking you tonight if you want to just print your name at the top … and sign the bottom saying that you agree it’s OK for us to apply for the grant. This is not saying: ‘Hey, we want them to do the work.’ We have to apply for the grant and we can’t even apply unless our county officials say it’s OK.”
District 3 Justice of the Peace Harrie Farrow indicated that she was reluctant to sign.
“I’m all inclined to believe you’re a wonderful company and everything, but after somebody talks to me for five minutes …” Farrow said, asking Ballance if she could mail the document to him after taking time to review it.
Ballance provided Farrow with a mailing address.
Ballance said his company is currently finishing the installation of 137 miles of fiber in Boone County.
“We received a grant in 2022 to do that, and we’re finishing up that project in the next couple of months,” Ballance said. “We’ve got a thousand people getting access to the internet who didn’t have it before.”
“If seven other companies got us to sign this, they could also apply for the grant?” Farrow asked.
“Yes,” Ballance said. “And I need five signatures.”
Several JPs signed the document at the meeting.
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