Metronet has announced that an ongoing project to bring a multi-gigabit fiber optic network to Fayetteville has led to that city being designated as the company’s latest “Certified Gigabit City.”

Metronet’s work to build a fiber network in North Carolina’s sixth largest city began in 2021, and the company has since built more than 170 miles of fiber-optic network throughout the city, a Nov. 29 announcement from the company said.

As a result of the construction, Metronet’s services have become “accessible to a majority of households and businesses throughout the city,” the company’s announcement said.

According to Metronet, certification as a “Gigabit City Powered by Metronet” is earned once a majority of households and business locations in a community have access to Metronet’s services and internet speeds of at least 1 Gigabit.

Metronet said the network build was made possible by a fully-funded $70 million investment in the community. Comments from Fayetteville’s city manager were included with the company’s announcement.

“With Metronet’s investment in our city, residents and businesses have gained widespread access to a reliable internet connection, an imperative need in today’s world,” said Fayetteville City Manager Douglas J. Hewett. “As Fayetteville continues to focus on our advancement as a connected, forward-thinking city, Metronet’s commitment to our community has helped us make large strides to achieving our goals.”

Metronet’s government affairs director, Terry Whitfield, said Metronet has continued to connect residents and businesses in Fayetteville.

“We are sincerely grateful for the steadfast support of city leadership as we have moved through our construction efforts to power Fayetteville with Metronet’s 100% fiber optic internet and the future of technology,” Whitfield said.