The Valentine City Council met last week to approve the contract between the city and AMA-TechTel to finally bring high speed internet to the Valentine area. The agreement allows for up to ten three foot antennas mounted on top of the taller of the two water towers. They will start with four and add more as they obtain more customers.
AMA-Techtel’s Josh Constancio was on hand and answered a number of questions the council members had. He said they’ll start on Monday planning how the project will be implemented. The contract allows 90 days for the installation, but the hope for all concerned is that it will go a bit faster. Much of the process has been refined by AMA-Techtel as many small towns have a very similar installation. The five year contract will give the city $200 per month plus free internet and phones to all city offices.
The technicians will experiment with range. Constancio said the terrain around Valentine is ideal for getting the best range possible which could be 10 miles or more. The receivers will be mounted on the roof of the customer’s home and will provide phone service along with internet – both hard wired and wifi. There is a backup battery pack to insure that the service will work in the event of a power failure. A town hall party is planned with a meal, door prizes and a Q & A session. Constancio
stressed that they are community oriented and is pleased to become a
part of our community.
