HOPKINS, S.C. — If you're driving down Lower Richland Boulevard or Camp Creek Road, you'll see orange wiring going through the ground. That's because Richland County Council contracted a private company, TruVista Telecom, to lay 55 miles of fiber optic cables. The project will provide Lower Richland residents access to high-speed internet over broadband.
"The projects are transformative in the sense that the community will have world class services in a rural setting," said Richland County Vice-Chair, Dalhi Myers. "That is what the best rural communities offer. I think we will be able to attract people who want to be in a rural environment and want to live in the modern world."
Myers said nearly almost all the children who grow up in Lower Richland and become adults move somewhere else because there is no access to world-class services. She believes this project allows for growth without interrupting the rural lifestyle.
"What I would like to see is a return to a level of commerce and community growth that allows the community to remain livable for the next 100 years," Myers explained. "Hopefully, it will not result in the kind of year over year population decline that we have consistently seen."
People who live in Lower Richland should expect to have high-speed internet access at their fingertips sometime next year.