HUDSONVILLE, Mich. — Ottawa County crews are working to connect thousands of residents to high-speed internet as part of a $15 million infrastructure project aimed at closing the digital divide in underserved areas.
Ronda Fisher and her family have lived in their Hudsonville home for 10 years, but for the past decade they've had virtually no reliable internet access.
WATCH: "You don't realize how much you use the internet until it actually works:" Ottawa County broadband project connects first customers
"I mean we're on a dirt road, but we're not out in the middle of nowhere," Ronda said.
The lack of connectivity has significantly impacted daily life for the Fisher family.
"We streamed TV and it would just spin and spin. My son would do his gaming and none of us would be able to watch TV for the whole day," Ronda explained.
Paul Sachs, director of Ottawa County's Department of Strategic Impact, said the internet connectivity issues extend far beyond Fisher's household, affecting approximately 11,000 homes countywide.
"It's literally everywhere across the county," Sachs said.
The demand for better service is constant, according to Sachs.
"I get emails literally daily from residents saying when will I get better high-speed," he said.
The county is deploying 325 miles of new fiber cable to directly connect to about 2,500 homes and bring high speed internet access to 6,000 homes.
"We're really closing that gap on what we understand is the underserved areas," Sachs said.
The project will be completed in 17 phases, moving across the southeast portion of the county and expanding northward.
Sachs says the county is hoping to secure funding for a second phase of the project bringing high-speed internet access to an additional 5,000 homes.
Ronda is among the first residents to be connected under the new program. For her, the improved connectivity represents a quality-of-life upgrade for her and her family.
"You don't realize how much you use the internet until it actually works properly and then you're like 'oh, this is what everyone has going on right now,'" she said.
The county expects to complete the project by August 2026 and hopes to secure funding for a second phase by the end of this year.
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