Small Midcoast community finally connected to high-speed broadband

PORTLAND (WGME) – Residents of a small community on the Midcoast are finally getting connected to high-speed broadband.

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It's part of a mostly privately funded project that's been years in the making.

The community of Georgetown took it upon themselves to get connected and formally started connecting the first customers Wednesday.

Georgetown Broadband is a private-public partnership.

Ten families on the island invested $2.5 million, combined with a grant from the state.

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It was a unique approach to solving the community's broadband needs that has served as a success story for other areas of the state.

"This isn't just about, 'Oh gee, Netflix is coming faster,' this has been a community driven project from the very beginning, understanding how important it is for enhanced connectivity to underline the development of the community," Carlos Barrionuevo of Georgetown Broadband LLC said.

Hundreds of people on the island have now been upgraded from DSL to fiber internet because of the project.

Now they hope the conversation turns to how to leverage this new system for future community development.