The Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority has been awarded $100,000 to fund the installation of high-speed telecommunications fiber optic lines in the Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority's Commerce Park.

These fiber optic lines, which will be installed in cooperation with the Development Authority of the North Country, will provide service to 28 businesses that employ over 500 residents throughout St. Lawrence County.

The completed project is expected to attract several new industries that rely on modern telecommunications infrastructure to conduct daily operations. The project is expected to help create 100 new jobs.

The grant comes from federal Northern Border Regional Commission funds administered by the New York Department of State.

“The Development Authority of the North Country is pleased to be working with the Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority (OBPA) in implementing this NBRC Grant,” said Dave Wolf, General Manager for Telecommunications for the Development Authority of the North Country. “Pre-positioning the OBPA Business Parks with open access broadband fiber will help the OBPA attract and retain businesses in this important industrial development area and should encourage investment and job creation in St. Lawrence County.”

The NBRC is a regional economic development partnership between federal, state, and local government. Established by Congress in the 2008 Farm Bill, the commission is composed of the governors of the New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, and a federal co-chair, who is appointed by the president of the United States. Each year, Congress appropriates funds for commission programs.