Downtown Westerly-Pawcatuck is a bustling, pleasant place; attractive for its selection of hip eateries, scenic Victorian strolling park, art galleries and a lovely river. The second half of this hyphenated community, however, has definitive disadvantages compared to its Rhode Island counterpart. There are more empty, downtrodden or underutilized buildings in Pawcatuck – a fact that seems even more obvious given the thriving nature of Westerly so tantalizingly close and within view across the Pawcatuck River.

There are many reasons for Pawcatuck’s struggles, including the general battle to adapt to the changing nature of commercial downtowns and the fact that particular property owners are reportedly neither willing to improve their buildings nor sell them. One problem Pawcatuck should not have, however, is the lack of broadband internet service it is experiencing.

A group of Pawcatuck business and property owners late last month pleaded with the Board of Selectmen to find a solution to this lack of services they said is delaying business development, costing property owners tenants and the town tax dollars. Two building owners said they would not invest in renovating apartments in their buildings until broadband is available and a business owner said she would not renew her lease without the service. A restaurateur also ended his pursuit to open a new eatery in the now shuttered Broad Street Bistro building, at least in part because of the lack of broadband service. The lack of internet also is a deterrent in the quest to redevelop the hulking and empty Campbell Grain Co. building.

Broadband internet service can no longer be considered a luxury. Connectivity is essential for businesses needing fast credit card processing, the ability to order needed supplies and email communications. Residents also demand reliable, fast internet service. Apartments without it are more likely to sit empty.

Despite their problems, the property owners can be thankful that dedicated town officials took the issue seriously and are working to solve it. Selectmen, with Mike Spellman the leading advocate in this charge, along with other officials such as Pawcatuck Fire Marshal Kevin Burns, are spending considerable time brainstorming solutions and working with representatives of Thames Valley Communications to bring the service to the area.

For its part, Thames Valley identified Pawcatuck as underserved even before the business owners took their pleas to selectmen, and started the wheels in motion to bring service to this section of downtown.

Those wheels need to turn more quickly, however. Thames Valley has an obligation to provide actual service to all of its service area, even where it might be a bit trickier or more complicated to do so. This is a problem that should already have been solved. The business and property owners should not have been driven to public pleading.

Josiah Dodge, who owns the Irish Rose Tattoo at 29 West Broad St., told selectmen: “I’ve been here a year and a half without internet. Is it going to take another year and a half? Just put up the wire.”

But stringing the wire appears to be precisely the problem, aggravated by the Amtrak tracks that divide the village. Wireless broadband access could be the solution. It would have the added benefit of promoting Pawcatuck as an area where high-speed access could be found at any location. What is now a liability could become as asset.

Whatever the solution, before Dodge and other businesses abandon downtown Pawcatuck out of frustration, meaning more lost tax dollars for Stonington, Thames Valley and/or town officials must make solving this problem a top priority.