The path to prosperity and the future of the Twin Counties opened on Monday in Galax.

State and local officials joined together at the Rex Theatre to celebrate the launch of The Wired Road, a broadband deployment initiative geared at making sure all citizens and businesses in Carroll, Grayson and Galax have access to the Information Superhighway at the highest speeds possible.

“Our vision is to connect every home, business, government office, school in this region to a world-class telecommunications infrastructure,” said Grayson County Supervisor Mike Maynard, who hosted the launch. “It’s about the creation and being able to make improvements in economic opportunities, educational opportunities, healthcare opportunities, all those things that will make our community more viable.”

Several elected officials spoke at the launch, and presentations were given by Carroll County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Greg Smith and Twin County Regional Healthcare President and CEO Jon Applebaum on how The Wired Road will help their respective institutions.

There were also several school-aged children in attendance for the announcement. Many of the gathered officials pointed to them and their future in the area as the reason why The Wired Road is a necessity now.

“It’s not too late for these young people to stay here and live prosperous and productive lives,” said Del. Ward Armstrong.

Armstrong compared broadband deployment to the growth and expansion of railroads and their role in shaping the country in the 1800s.

“There are a lot of parallels between railroads in this country and high speed Internet and broadband deployment,” Armstrong said. “By that, I mean in the 19th century, this country, in order to settle itself, had to build railroads. If you were a community that had a railroad line that ran through it, you prospered greatly. If you didn’t, you struggled. In this, the 21st century, I think there are a lot of parallels with that. In order for us in Southside and Southwest Virginia to have a real chance of prosperity, we have to have the infrastructure and tools to do that. Broadband is an integral part of that. If you don’t have high-speed Internet, it’s very difficult to attract those businesses and industries that are going to be prosperous in the 21st century. It is absolutely essential.”

Del. Bill Carrico said The Wired Road will allow the Twin Counties to compete for business and industry in the future, but what’s more, it will create 300 jobs during the implementation and construction stages. When it’s all in place, Carrico said The Wired Road will provide broadband-based Internet to 22,000 homes and 1,500 businesses throughout Carroll, Grayson and Galax.

“That’s important for our area,” Carrico said. “We want to be at the forefront of the 21st century. We want these kids to be able to have the opportunities we didn’t have and it’s going to allow businesses and farms to grow and market their goods and it’s going to expand the capabilities of households.”

Carrico said he, Armstrong, and Senators Roscoe Reynolds and William Wampler, who were also in attendance, believe this project can help Southwest Virginia level the playing field when competing with Northern Virginia and the Tidewater regions.

“We think this is going to put us at the forefront and put us in competition with places across Virginia that have this capability right now,” Carrico said. “We’re looking forward to great success and I’m honored to be a part of it.”

Senators Wampler and Reynolds serve as Commissioners on the Tobacco Commission, which has, to date, given $900,000 to The Wired Road.

“This is one of the things the General Assembly and the Tobacco Commission had in mind as they looked forward from the past to the future as to how our communities will be transformed and how we can take advantage of the economic opportunities that will present themselves in the future,” Reynolds said.

Wampler cited specific examples of how broadband deployment has helped other communities in Southwest Virginia. He said the Tobacco Commission decided that implementing broadband throughout the region would be one of its signature investments and the Twin Counties will soon reap those benefits, much as other communities already have.

“That’s what this is all about, being able to link Grayson, Carroll and Galax together and make sure you will not be bypassed when it comes to technology jobs and you can compete on a worldwide basis,” Wampler said.

Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development Deputy Director of Community Development Todd Christensen said the Twin Counties are already considered an attractive place for people to live. Now, with The Wired Road, the Twin Counties can also become an attractive place to work.

“People want to live here and people want to stay here and people are very jealous of you for being able to live in this area. Galax and Carroll and Grayson are known worldwide for what you’re doing for your cultural heritage but also this project is nationally known,” Christensen said. “You should really be proud of your leaders and the amount of collaboration.”

Galax Mayor C.M. Mitchell said that collaboration is a big reason why the launch was able to happen. He said so far, approximately $1.3 million in local funds has been generated, including $170,000 from the Solid Waste Authority that he announced at the launch. Mitchell said in all, that investment has generated close to $4 million in funds for The Wired Road.

Mitchell said that willingness to work together will give today’s students reason to stay here when they go job searching.

“With all the other projects we’re working on together in a collaborative fashion, these young folks will be able to stay here and live here and have good jobs here,” Mitchell said. “That’s the thing that we’re all working for, is to stabilize our community and make sure we have a high quality of life in our region. We have a lot of special things here.”