A Schomberg Internet service provider (ISP) is crying foul over Dufferin County’s decision to use Barrett Xplore Inc. to complete the expansion of broadband Internet services previously contracted to Everus Communications Inc.

Everus went into receivership last July. New Brunswickbased Barrett, which touts itself as a leading Canadian ISP, subsequently purchased the assets and contracts of that company through the trustee, Bancorp.

At the time of its bankruptcy, Everus was in the process of completing an expansion of services in Dufferin under an Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) program in which the ministry, the ISP and the county would each contribute one-third of the costs of the expansion.

Continuation of the planned expansion would be on the same terms with Barrett as had been with Everus, but there are several steps to be followed before the planned expansion into unserviced areas of Mulmur, Melancthon, Amaranth and East Luther Grand Valley can happen.

County clerk Pam Hillock says: “OMAFRA requires new updated technical plan which would include revised deadlines since the original deadlines were not met; .. the County should enter into an agreement with BXI outlining the responsibilities of each party; and a revised technical plan will be proposed by BXI and submitted to OMAFRA for approval.”

But Schomberg-based Bob Cheeseman of Canadian Wireless Integrators Inc., the operators of Zing Networks, has taken issue with the county’s award to Barrett on the basis, he says in a letter, that Barrett bought the assets of Everus, and did not buy the company.

“It is also our position that Barrett Xplore Inc. has no right to any funding that was slated to go to the defunct Everus Communications Inc. and has only purchased the assets as indicated in (a) press release.”

Mr. Cheeseman also says that public funding should not be provided to any one ISP for service in areas where others might already be operating.

“No company should be provided with public funding to develop competitive products or services to be delivered to the same potential customers as another provider already established.

“It is our understanding that the intention of OMAFRA was to assist in providing broadband internet to areas deemed unserviced. This has been abused over and over again,” Mr. Cheeseman says, and adds that he could provide many examples.

The county had purchased the Whitfield tower from the Province as part of its one-third in-kind contribution to the current broadband expansion project.

Thus, say county officials, the selected ISP needs to have first choice of access to it.

Mr. Cheeseman says otherwise. In effect, he says space on the tower should not be reserved while awaiting Barrett’s commencement of its project.

County council is expected to concur, however, with the advice of its consultants on the project.