County of Oconee
The need for broadband services among community anchor institutions in rural, economically distressed Oconee County, South Carolina, has escalated significantly beyond current resources, hampering economic growth in the region. Oconee FOCUS, a public-private partnership between the county, several local small businesses, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, proposes to build a fiber-optic middle-mile network to serve community anchor institutions in the rural parts of the county and connect with high-speed networks across the state. The project aims to improve the Oconee region’s attractiveness to employers, promote public safety and health, and enhance educational opportunities by enabling distance learning, video conferencing, and remote research.
