Progress continues on broadband fiber installation by City of Newberry contractors as installation of fiber optics on city utility poles is now complete in half of the city. When finished in late spring, Newberry will be one of the first cities in South Carolina to have internet speed of a gig, the standard for the fastest internet, available throughout its city limits.

In the industry, the city’s fiber system is called an “open-access” system, meaning the city builds the infrastructure and then companies who meet certain criteria can pay the city to be on the city system. Those firms can then serve homes and businesses. We’re most pleased WC Fiber is on the city system and is offering their internet, T.V. and phone services in Newberry. WC Fiber is part of West Carolina Tel, an Abbeville-based, highly-respected telephone cooperative established in the 1950s.

WC Fiber started offering broadband services in 2008 and is adding to their service areas, adding Greenwood in 2017 and Newberry in 2019. Thursday, they held the grand opening for their Newberry office, which is downtown in The Standard of Main, formerly the Mower Building.

We’re excited that Newberry citizens will have access to the latest technology as it can benefit many areas — such as businesses better able to compete, an adult able to telecommute, a student researching a project, or quality of life improvements with better availability to entertainment options.

In other business news, the city congratulates the Hawkins family, the new operators of the Zesto restaurant. Owners of Hillside Sausage Company, Brian and Hunter Hawkins and the long-time Zesto staff have the Newberry institution tasting as good as ever. We also congratulate retiring owner Jack Brooks.

The city will celebrate the renovated Old Newberry Hotel by holding our regular city council meeting at the hotel’s venue space Tuesday at 7 p.m. The hotel entrance is on Caldwell Street, and the public is invited. We’ll have refreshments after the meeting.

The downtown merchants will have live music downtown next Saturday from 5-8 p.m. The always-popular Main Street Lights event is Friday, November 22.

Finally, when we welcome visiting groups to Newberry, as we have several times lately, we often tell them they’ve probably enjoyed a product from Newberry County. The list of “made in Newberry” is getting longer and more diverse. For example, New York City recently bought Komatsu loaders (those big machines out front) to use as snowplows. Valmont is making fiberglass utility poles for large California utilities as those utilities struggle greatly with fires, and the fiberglass poles are fire resistant.

We tell visitors if they’ve ever made a sandwich with delicious Oscar Mayer turkey, it came from Newberry’s Kraft-Heinz plant. Pioneer Foods makes McGriddles for McDonalds. Almark, which operates out of the ISE facility, sells hard-boiled eggs to grocery stores and restaurants. Samsung washing machines, made in Newberry, are featured in Lowes, Best Buy and Home Depot. The lumber companies like West Fraser and Georgia-Pacific sell made in Newberry wood products across the country. Plus, there are boat companies, tire suppliers, and numerous others.

After going over that list with community developers from across the state who met in Newberry in October, and that group being most impressed, I’ve decided Newberry County has one of the best and most interesting manufacturing groups of any rural county I’ve heard of. It’s much to be proud of.

Thank you for supporting Newberry businesses and events.

https://www.newberryobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/web1_Foster-Senn.jpg

Foster Senn

Contributing Columnist

Foster Senn is the mayor of Newberry. His columns appear periodically in The Newberry Observer.