A low bid landed a telecommunications contractor the job laying a 47-mile fiber broadband network in Roanoke and Salem, but past troubles and recent disputes have spurred local officials to reconsider who might continue the work.
Three months after former Edwards Telecommunications CEO James Todd Edwards pleaded guilty to fraud, the Roanoke Valley Broadband Authority hired his recently renamed company in June 2015 based on a bid that was more than 10 percent lower than the nearest competitor’s.
Authority President and CEO Frank Smith said he’s satisfied with the work of Utility Service Contractors — the South Carolina-based company changed its name last year — but officials have decided to rebid the contract for work to expand the broadband network into Roanoke County and Vinton.
County supervisors in late May approved spending $3.4 million on expansion.
