By DAVE HAMRICK
Staff Writer

MediaOne cable company will meet its Dec. 31, 2000 deadline for upgrading its service in Fayette County, a company spokesman vowed this week.

But county officials are skeptical. “I'm concerned,” said Chris Cofty, aide to the County Commission. “We would like to see them start something, and I've asked for a construction schedule.”

Commissioners renewed the firm's franchise in Fayette last December with the stipulation that an upgrade to higher quality and more reliable fiber optic technology be completed by the end of next year.

Cofty said the county recently has been inundated with complaints of interrupted or poor service due to a spate of bad weather, adding that many of those complaints could be avoided if the system were upgraded.

“As things look right now, we're on track and will certainly meet that deadline,” said Reg Griffin, a MediaOne spokesman.

Griffin said plans are to begin the design phase of Fayette's upgrade in October. Design will take about two months, he said, with pre-construction work to start in December.

Construction will begin in February, he said, and should be completed by October. “That would put us well within the agreed-upon time,” he said.

The firm must replace 962 miles of old coaxial cable with fiber-optic cable in Fayette, Griffin said, adding that construction crews are currently completing an average of 30-35 miles per week.

Crews are working to provide the new technology for 570,000 homes throughout metro Atlanta, he said. “We're just trying to get that accomplished in a time frame that will satisfy everybody,” he added.

That task is a little over half finished, said Griffin. “We have about 475,000 homes that we've `passed' now,” he said. “We'll ultimately pass about 900,000.” Homes that are passed include those that the cable company serves and those where the owners opt not to receive the service.

Cofty said county officials are concerned that MediaOne is concentrating on the areas with the highest population density first, and has put Fayette on a back burner. “It's more productive to spend their money in those areas,” he said.

Griffin said the company will finish on time. “Everything is on schedule and looking good,” he said.