Faster internet may no longer be just a pipe dream for Tamworth residents, as council moves to approve a million dollar data centre.
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Tamworth Regional Council has a development application (DA) currently on public exhibition from Leading Edge Data Centres, one of 14 the group has submitted across NSW.
They plan to build a $1 million facility on Johnston Street in North Tamworth, and hope to open as early as 2021.
Business owners Adam Petronaitis and Narissa King have welcomed the opportunities a centre of this kind would bring to not just their businesses but the whole town.
The centre would give direct access to all the major providers, enabling local, national and global enterprises to service the area.
Leading Edge's Newcastle counterpart is already under construction and is scheduled to open just before Christmas this year.
We'll be on the same playing field as any other business in the metropolitan cities.
- Adam Petronaitis
Chris Thorpe, CEO of Leading Edge Data Centres said the centre would have less people stressing out over their poor internet.
"For years, regional Australian cities like Tamworth have put up with unreliable and costly internet connections, compared to their metropolitan counterparts," he said.
"They had no alternative - but we are changing that."
It would provide faster connectivity for businesses by reducing the need to connect through internet links to Sydney, which can be quite expensive.
The proposed investment has also been met with approval from Mayor Col Murray, who said the benefits go beyond having faster internet.
"Having a state-of-the-art data centre in Tamworth will expand the options available for our community," he said.
"This type of infrastructure will not only support business innovation and growth but also give our residents more options for digital infrastructure."
The news has been met with enthusiasm by Tamworth business owner Adam Petronaitis and local Narissa King.
Ms King said providing fast and reliable internet is vital for her customers, as slow internet speeds are "guaranteed to irritate customers".
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"As a small business, in a very challenging time, we can't afford that, which is why I am very excited to support the development of this new data centre," Ms King said.
Mr Petronaitis from Technitune Computer Specialists said the centre will "completely change the business landscape of Tamworth."
"We'll be on the same playing field as any other business in the metropolitan cities," he enthused.
Leading Edge Data Centres is a technology company with a mission to bridge the digital divide of regional Australia.
They hope their digital network will enable faster application performance spanning across many industries, such as content hosting, IoT data processing, smart cities, deployment of 5G, digital mapping, AgriTech, autonomous machinery, telehealth and more.
