Cox Communications brings gigabit internet speeds and other services to nearly 8,000 residents and businesses in Cochise County.

The Arizona Commerce Authority has announced their 2022 Arizona Broadband Development Grant recipients, awarding $8,279,793 million to Cox Communications to bring multi-gigabit, symmetrical services to Douglas via an all-fiber network utilizing state-of-the-art technology. Cox will invest an additional $2,207,000 for this project, providing nearly 8,000 residents and businesses in this important rural border community with redundant, high-speed service. Additionally, Cox plans to include an 8.4-mile fiber build directly to the Douglas Campus for Cochise College, enabling greater bandwidth and faster speeds for the college. Looking to the near future, Cox’s fiber to the premises upgrade will create a pathway to the next big milestone in residential speeds – 10 gigabit.

In addition to its financial investment in Douglas, Cox will provide:

  • A Cox Innovation Center, which will host computers, printers and the latest technology for student learning (location TBD).
  • Digital equity support through the distribution of 100 devices and low-cost internet service for qualified residents.
  • Production support and ad placement with Cox Media include producing a long-form video to promote the community and digital equity.

The project is expected to be completed within twenty-four months. 

“Access to high-speed broadband will provide reliable, high-quality internet service to many unserved and underserved residents while expanding opportunities for economic development and jobs in our community,” stated Douglas Mayor Donald C. Huish. “We look forward to working with Cox Communications and thank the company for their continued investment in our community.”

“It is very exciting to be community partners with Cox Communications and the City of Douglas to bring enhanced internet service to our rural area,” said Dr. J.D. Rottweiler, Cochise College president. “Today, access to broadband is as necessary as drinking water and electricity for a residential community college, and this will be a game changer for our Douglas Campus as we prepare students for the new economy. We are grateful for the support in providing equitable digital access for our students, campus and community.”

Cox will begin engineering, construction design and necessary permitting for this fiber-based network and will work with local, state, and federal agencies to obtain necessary approvals. Residents in Douglas will soon see work commencing in their community, and residents in new build areas can visit https://www.cox.com/getfiber to express interest in Cox services.

“Connectivity is at the heart of everything we do. Our Arizona team has been focused on providing the most powerful high-speed internet to underserved and rural communities across our state. We thank the Arizona Commerce Authority for their partnership and for putting their confidence in Cox to bring important services to the residents in Douglas,” said Percy Kirk, Senior Vice President and Southwest Regional Manager, Cox Communications.

Cox will make every effort to minimize the construction impact where and when possible and will communicate the expansion and progress of their work with residents through local media and direct communications from Cox.

Building upon its longstanding efforts to bridge the digital divide, Cox is committing more than $400M over the next three years to expand its footprint to reach underserved and rural communities across the country. Cox has already committed more than $75M to date to expand to Arizona communities, including Arizona City, the City of Maricopa, San Manuel, Oracle, Black Canyon City, Congress, Huachuca City, Sun Lakes, SE Sierra Vista, Eloy, Toltec, Desert Hills, Wickenburg, and Summit View.