Last updated on August 29, 2022
All Charlemont property owners are eligible for a subsidy to make each house, apartment building, or business ‘Internet Ready’ without committing to a year of service. Sometimes referred to as a ‘cold drop’, the installation will typically include making the connection from the distribution network to the outside of a premise, but does not include any of the interior wiring needed for service to be activated. To qualify for this reduced subsidy of $500 for owner occupied dwellings and $1000 for landlords, each location must be signed up by the August 31 deadline using the service tier labeled ‘I want fiber to my house but am not ready to commit to service’.
In many cases, these cold drops can be made without an out of pocket cost to the property owner, however every location’s cost is different depending on whether utilities are underground or overhead and how far the location is from the municipal fiber distribution network. Making this exterior connection will get significantly more expensive once the construction concludes because new connections will not be able to take advantage of the negotiated bulk pricing built into Charlemont’s construction contract and will also need to pay a mobilization charge once the construction crews have finished work in town.
When a location is ready to take service for the first time, there will be an additional out of pocket cost to do the interior wiring and provide equipment needed. The cost of this final is step is expected to be consistent from property to property for the basic installation.
For those that love their current internet service provider, have an existing contract for internet services from other vendors that makes canceling prohibitive, or have an apartment or studio that is currently unoccupied, consider a cold drop! All locations must sign up before August 31 to lock in exterior installation pricing and a subsidy to become internet ready!
To schedule an installation, please contact Whip City Fiber at 413-485-1251 or email customerservice@wgeld.org.