CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — The coronavirus pandemic proved just how important it is to have internet access everywhere, something that turned out to be a challenge for Ohioans living in rural areas.
Crystal Moody is the owner of Crosstown Creamery and Diner in the Village of Tarlton. Tarlton, which has a population under 300 people, is in Pickaway and Fairfield counties.
“We’ve been open for five years,” said Moody. “We love our customers and our staff and it takes the whole team to make it run.”
When the pandemic hit, she said it was challenging for her and the community to operate virtually because of access to the internet.
“You have to have reliable connectivity for your business to function,” said Moody. “It was challenging at times.”
State Sen. of the 20th District in Ohio Tim Schaffer said it was a concern voiced to him by community members.
“We heard a lot from families, families that were hanging out in the retail restaurant parking lots because they were trying to get the wifi going,” said Schaffer.
On Tuesday, Charter Communications, the parent company of Spectrum Networks, announced the expansion of broadband internet in the southeast area of Ohio.
“This is going to be a real game changer for this whole region of the state,” Schaffer said.
It’s a private investment aimed at helping the community and business owners like Moody, who is excited to see what the partnership brings.
“As a community we have other business that are coming into town that were operating from home so the broadband is really going to help,” said Moody.
