Charles Pointe Information Network Attracts National Attention

BRIDGEPORT-Telecommunications experts throughout the United States are talking about Charles Pointe, the master planned community being built here.

Charles Pointe’s information network attracted a lot of attention at the national Fiber-to-the-Home Council Conference in Las Vegas, NV, last week. The council represents the telecommunications industry.

Tellabs, a global telecommunications company, gave a presentation on Charles Pointe.

On October 5, Tellabs Segment Marketing Manager Jas Sangha told conference attendees that Charles Pointe will have one of the most advanced fiber optic and wireless information networks in the country.

Rather than constructing businesses, houses and offices and then wiring them, Charles Pointe is being built with communications as an integrated part of the plan.

"Genesis Partners of Bridgeport is constructing Charles Pointe as a showcase for the high-technology transformation that’s taking place in West Virginia," Sangha said.

Home and business owners purchasing property at Charles Pointe are also buying advanced data, voice and video services delivered over a state-of-the-art fiber network connecting every building in the community, Sangha stated.

"Charles Pointe is attracting property buyers with a communication, entertainment and information systems that will not go out of date, a system that will be faster, better, more affordable and more flexible than alternative networks. Voice, data, and video services will be offered over a common infrastructure," he emphasized.

Tellabs will supply the cornerstone of Charles Pointe’s fiber network, the Tellabs® FiberDirectSM solution, which provides equipment to supply homes and businesses with high-speed fiber.

"Our community will be based on how people will live, work and play. Fiber optics crosses all those things. We look at fiber not as a utility but as an amenity," said James A. Corton, managing partner of Genesis Partners.

Communications Plus of Morgantown will build the Charles Pointe infrastructure, provide phone service and Internet access, pipe in video, and create an Intranet that will link everyone in the community based on their areas of interest.

Sangha said that when residents get up in the morning, they’ll be able turn on their video screens and see a list of community events, such as when athletic teams will practice, what’s offered at restaurants and what’s playing at the movies.

"A coach will be able to reserve a field and schedule practices online," Sangha said. "Residents will be able to easily locate and contact their friends and family."

He said occupants will be able to get unlimited video and sound channels, a minimum of three megabits of Internet service, expanded phone service and much more.

TelAtlantic Communications Inc. is the corporate parent of Communications Plus.

TelAtlantic Chief Operating Officer Walt Burmeister thinks quite a few doctors will live and have offices in Charles Pointe. He said that while they are at work or even at home, physicians will have access to reports and magnetic resonance images from area hospitals.

"Genesis Partners has established an unprecedented, long-term interest in the communications infrastructure of an entire community. Charles Pointe is ideal for the end customer, the developer, the service provider and West Virginia’s economy," Sangha remarked.