Consolidated Communications begins Dublin broadband work in advance of bond approval

A network engineer is surveying utility poles in Dublin in advance of the municipal broadband rollout, Select Board member Carole Monroe said Monday, and encourages residents to wave a welcome if they see her driving a white Jeep Wrangler around town while surveying the infrastructure.

Consolidated Communications is conducting the survey to make sure all poles can physically handle the fiber, Monroe said, and are identifying poles that may be too short or old for the installation. The engineer is also checking customer connections and determining how fiber will need to go to each home. The work is being conducted prior to bond approval, Monroe said, and that she’s also heard that the company is proactively ordering equipment and fiber to make sure it’s on hand pending approval.

The application for the town’s 1.3 million dollar bond is due on Friday, Monroe said, “Then it’s a wait and see,” she said, although she expects it to be approved. Construction could start in July, and some homes could be connected by the end of the year, she said.

—By ABBE HAMILTON