Charlemont has been awarded a USDA Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG) of $36,000 to support the purchase of the core Active Components Bill of Materials for the Charlemont municipal fiber-optic network. Combined with the needed passive electronics, this equipment will form the hub of the Charlemont municipal fiber network housed in the Network Equipment Enclosure of the town hall.
Many thanks to the Charlemont businesses that provided letters of support for this project including Hall Tavern Farm, J.S. Rae, Crabapple Whitewater, Warfield House Inn, Blue Heron Farm, Gilchrest Associates, Leprechaun Sheepskin, Red Rose Motel, and Zoar Outdoor.
Thanks also to the folks at the Massachusetts Rural Development office for their good work answering many questions and processing these grant applications through this disrupted time of remote work and pandemic.