This month we want to spotlight one of our longest partners, CenCon of Kansas, LLC. This construction company was founded in 1979 by Dale Franklin from Lebanon, Kansas. The company name CenCon is derived from Lebanon being the center of the continental United States. CenCon handles many types of construction, including these specific to Cunningham Fiber — directional boring, trenching, and plowing telecommunications cable underground.

Since Dale’s time, his son-in-law and daughter, Ryan and Tiffany Rietzke, have worked in their family business, and grandson Trent Reitzke now heads up the construction crews working on Cunningham Fiber’s projects. Three generations of their family have worked with three generations of ours in building the Cunningham telecommunications network. In all, the Franklin and Rietzke families have placed over 300 miles of our underground network since the late 1980s . Trent has carried the torch and is doing a great job on current fiber projects.

Brent Cunningham, General Manager of Cunningham Fiber, said, “It’s nice when you can still do business with a handshake like our grandfathers did. We trust CenCon and know the job was done right when they’re finished. They’re definitely our preferred partner on our underground construction projects.”

Trent noted, “It’s been an absolute pleasure working with a great family-owned telco, and I feel that each generation of CenCon has had a great partnership with their Cunningham counterpart. I look forward to continuing to grow the Cunningham Fiber network and expand their reach throughout the state of Kansas.”

After finishing up 30 miles of new Cunningham Fiber construction in Republic County, Trent’s next big project for us will be 60 miles of new construction in rural Cloud County starting this summer. We look forward to providing new fiber access to potential customers in those areas. CenCon would like to thank residents on its past construction routes for their patience in recent years, and let everyone know CenCon has thoroughly enjoyed working in our part of Kansas.