BERKELEY – A public hearing about Verizon bringing Fios to select areas of town will be held during the Holiday City Silver Ridge Park Coalition meeting. This will be held at the Silver Ridge Park North clubhouse, located at 101 Westport Drive, at 9 a.m. on February 3.
Fios is the product name Verizon uses in relation to its internet, cable, and telephone service bundle.
Councilwoman Judy Noonan said the service will only become available in senior communities at this time. Verizon representatives will be available to provide more information at the meeting.
Richard McConville, a Verizon spokesman, confirmed that Fios was being brought in to sections of the town, but did not discuss which sections. He said the timeline is that work will begin this year, but it is unknown when Berkeley residents will be hooked up to the service.
Some residents have been unhappy with the current provider, Comcast. They even filed a class action suit against them in 2015. According to the suit, the residents accused Comcast of being unclear about costs, particularly involving price changes after an introductory rate expires. They were also unhappy with the quality of the service, and the difficulty in speaking with customer service. Comcast has said in the past that the company does not comment on lawsuits, but has made strides toward making customer service more accessible and upgrading equipment.
Additionally, a letter went out to residents promising new fiber optic networks from Verizon last year, which confused a lot of residents. The letters, as it was later learned, were mistakenly sent to Berkeley residents who use the Toms River postal codes. The fiber optics were going to Toms River.
