Welcome back to The Buildout, Light Reading’s weekly tracking column dedicated to monitoring broadband network deployments, infrastructure buildouts, state and federal grant awards, and major service launches across the United States. In this week’s installment, we are following a wave of new construction projects, strategic private investments, and state-backed initiatives that collectively bring high-speed fiber internet and expanded broadband access to more than 60,000 locations nationwide.
As the telecommunications industry continues to navigate complex regulatory environments, permitting challenges, and evolving public-private partnerships, providers large and small are pushing forward with localized construction. From tribal lands in the American Southwest and rural cooperatives in the Midwest to dense municipal expansions in the Northeast, the ongoing push to close the digital divide remains a central focus for network operators and government agencies alike.
New Mexico Awards Grant to Pueblo of Zia
Efforts to expand high-speed internet access on tribal lands received a notable boost this week in New Mexico. The state’s Office of Broadband Access and Expansion (OBAE) officially awarded a $100,000 grant to the Pueblo of Zia, located in Sandoval County.
The funding was distributed through the state’s Grant Writing, Engineering, and Planning Program (GWEP). According to state officials, the financial support will enable the Pueblo to install 12 miles of new fiber broadband infrastructure. Once completed, this infrastructure will connect 193 unserved homes and 12 vital community institutions that have long lacked reliable high-speed connectivity.
A breakdown of the GWEP grant shows that $81,000 will be dedicated to obtaining professional services required for an aerial survey and subsurface utility engineering. This critical groundwork will supplement a larger $4.7 million grant previously awarded to the Pueblo in 2022 through the federal Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP), administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). Meanwhile, the remaining $19,000 from the GWEP grant will be directly allocated toward securing additional federal funding through ongoing grant-writing initiatives.
eX² Technology Brings Fiber to Holland, Michigan
Moving to the Midwest, residents and business owners in Holland, Michigan, now have access to a brand-new fiber network spanning Ottawa and Allegan counties, courtesy of infrastructure developer eX² Technology.
The comprehensive network buildout provides fiber infrastructure to virtually every residence in Holland. Industry tracking and company disclosures previously placed the project footprint at approximately 15,700 passings across 195 route miles.
The project stems from a competitive request for proposals issued in 2023, which resulted in the Holland Board of Public Works (Holland BPW) awarding eX² Technology a $15.9 million contract to handle the design and construction of the municipal-scale fiber network. eX² Technology, which was acquired in 2019 by Vivacity—a smart infrastructure and asset development firm backed by private equity fund Columbia Capital—has steadily expanded its footprint in regional fiber deployments.
Spectrum Grows Reach in Indiana and Michigan
Charter Communications continues to aggressively expand its Spectrum footprint into underserved rural pockets of the Midwest, bringing advanced fiber-powered broadband to thousands of new customers.
In Indiana, Spectrum recently went live in rural areas across two counties. The expansion brought high-speed broadband services to 520 homes and businesses in Crawford County, alongside an even larger deployment reaching 1,400 homes and businesses in Parke County.
Across the state line in Michigan, Spectrum’s footprint grew significantly with the launch of services to nearly 2,000 homes and businesses in Oscoda County. According to company announcements, the Michigan buildout covers multiple townships, including Big Creek, Clinton, Comins, Elmer, Greenwood, and Mentor.
These localized expansions form a core component of Spectrum’s ongoing, multi-billion-dollar investment strategy to construct robust fiber network infrastructure reaching roughly 1.7 million locations. The network deployments come on the heels of major structural shifts in the cable industry, highlighted by Charter Communications closing a massive $34.5 billion merger with Cox Communications, a move that will gradually transition acquired service territories under the Spectrum brand over the coming year.
Comcast Comes to More Minnesotans …
In Minnesota, Comcast Corporation announced that its high-speed Xfinity broadband services are now fully operational for nearly 13,000 new homes and businesses across the cities of Chanhassen and Nowthen.
Construction in the Anoka County city of Nowthen first broke ground in 2024, aided in part by a $2.5 million "Border to Border" broadband grant awarded by the state of Minnesota to help bridge the connectivity gap for rural and semi-rural residents. Simultaneously, Comcast commenced construction in 2024 on a $23 million privately funded network build in the Carver County city of Chanhassen, underscoring a mix of public and private capital driving broadband density in the region.
… and New Hampshirites
The expansion momentum for Comcast extended to the Northeast as well, where high-speed broadband services officially went live for nearly 4,700 homes and businesses across Milton and New Durham, New Hampshire.
The infrastructure project in Strafford County originally kicked off in 2025 and also incorporated the neighboring town of Farmington, bringing the total reach of the regional deployment to approximately 7,000 locations. According to project stakeholders, the network buildout was successfully completed months ahead of its original schedule.
Funding for the Milton portion of the build was bolstered by a $969,848 allocation secured through New Hampshire’s Broadband Matching Grant Initiative (BMGI), reflecting strong state-level backing to accelerate digital equity in rural New England.
Socket Starts Fredericktown Fiber Build
In Missouri, regional telecommunications provider Socket Fiber has officially broken ground on a new fiber-to-the-home network buildout in Fredericktown.
Once construction is finalized, the infrastructure will deliver high-speed connectivity to 3,000 homes and businesses throughout the Madison County area. Founded in 1994, Socket Fiber (formerly known as Socket Telecom) has experienced significant operational growth following a strategic private equity investment in 2025 led by Oak Hill Capital and Pamlico Capital, positioning the regional provider to accelerate its network expansions across the state.
GoNetspeed Kicks Off in South River, New Jersey
East Coast fiber deployments are also gaining steam, with GoNetspeed successfully connecting its very first wave of customers in South River, New Jersey, following the launch of construction earlier this summer.
The $13.6 million infrastructure project is designed to ultimately connect more than 10,500 homes and businesses across the Middlesex County region. GoNetspeed, currently backed by Oak Hill Capital, is slated to undergo a major corporate integration alongside Greenlight Networks as part of a $2 billion joint venture established earlier this year between T-Mobile and Oak Hill Capital. That transaction is widely anticipated to close in 2027, signaling further consolidation and investment in independent fiber platforms.
Optimum Also Heading to South River
Residents in South River, New Jersey, can look forward to even more competitive fiber options as Altice USA’s Optimum brand moves into the market.
In a recent corporate announcement, Optimum revealed a $14 million private network investment aimed at bringing ultra-fast internet speeds to thousands of residents and businesses spanning both South River and neighboring East Brunswick, New Jersey. Optimum anticipates opening its fiber network for commercial service offerings in these Middlesex County communities by early 2027, setting the stage for increased competition in the local broadband market.
