[Photo source Elk Valley Times, “Fallen Tree Design,” Aug. 9, 2024, via www.elkvalleytimes.com]
Nestled on the border of Marshall and Lincoln Counties in southern Middle Tennessee, the quaint, historic community of Petersburg is experiencing a resurgence in tourism largely driven by day-trippers to its town square—a postcard-worthy scene of bucolic, small-town living with a real sense of community.
The area’s recent boost in visitors may come as a surprise to many of its residents, but its burgeoning popularity is far from a coincidence to a handful of small business owners who’ve invested in the revitalization of its town square, including United Communications fiber broadband customer Mark Eichler.
Known as “Coach” for his past career as a management consultant, Mark moved to the nearby city of Shelbyville in 2015 and co-owns a local wood shop called Fallen Tree Designs. In the second act of his professional life, Mark now builds and sells heirloom-quality furniture using beautiful, locally sourced spalted hardwoods.
“I’ve driven through here over the last nine years going to visit my woodshop partner, and it’s a town that I could never forget,” Mark recalled. “What I found on my first visit was that there was a certain vibe in Petersburg that I didn’t feel anywhere else.”
In June 2024, Mark joined forces with a local antique seller to open Colt Show Antiques and Hardwoods, located at 204 Southside Square, alongside other independently owned and operated retail stores, restaurants, and galleries. Petersburg’s town hall, fire station, post office, and library are also conveniently located within a one-block radius.
Upon opening the store, Mark and his staff were using an outdated DSL connection provided by AT&T, which they found inadequate to support their point-of-sale software and Wi-Fi calling needs.
“It was hit or miss at best. And you can’t have a hit or miss and not have internet availability when you’re in a retail sales environment,” said Mark. “It took me two days of trying to find out who we can even talk to about that at AT&T.”
To his surprise, Mark soon discovered that United Communications served the town of Petersburg and had a fiber broadband line ready and waiting to start service to his building. After one phone call, a technician showed up to connect Mark’s store with the fastest, most reliable internet connection available.
“The last thing I thought I’d find is fiber on the square, but there it is,” he exclaimed. “You’re talking about blazing-fast speed and the reliability you’d expect in a big city. But here we got it in Petersburg, and honestly, I was shocked by that.”
As a town square merchant, Mark is now heavily involved in efforts to produce and promote a wide range of events and festivals to draw more visitors, and shoppers, to experience the charm and hospitality of Petersburg.
Despite the momentum they’ve built as a collective, Mark and his fellow merchants faced one major obstacle to their plans for revitalization: Almost the entirety of Petersburg’s town square was a cell phone dead zone, which left visitors and shoppers stranded without the ability to use their phones anywhere in the vicinity.
With Thanksgiving looming just days ahead, Mark emailed United Communications and asked if the company would be interested in providing free Wi-Fi service that covered the town square to ensure every visitor could stay connected while doing their holiday shopping.
United responded at a breakneck pace to come up with a two-stage solution: creating an interim Wi-Fi network by extending the range of Mark’s fiber broadband service before Black Friday and then setting up a permanent, independent public Wi-Fi network that is free to use for anyone visiting or working in the area.
“Here they are, offering a solution when I’m sitting here faced with a critical gap in my ability to run my business,” said Mark. “Here they are asking, ‘Hey, what if we did something like this?’ You don’t get that kind of service anywhere else. And that’s just a common theme running through all my conversations with United.”
Petersburg is the third town center to receive free public Wi-Fi service from United Communications. The company launched similar networks in downtown Shelbyville in 2023 and downtown Franklin in 2024. To use the free Wi-Fi service, users can search for the network called “access.united.net” on any internet-connected device.
“It doesn’t hurt that United has the latest and greatest technology,” said Mark. “But most importantly, every person I’ve ever dealt with at United all shared the same approach: they’re customer-focused.”
Business owners like Mark Eichler are proving that reliable, high-speed internet isn’t just a convenience—it’s a game-changer for growth, community engagement, and economic success.
Want to learn why Mark loves United – watch Mark’s video.
At United Communications, we’re committed to keeping all Middle Tennesseans connected when it matters most. If you’re ready to experience the same fast, dependable internet service that’s helping transform Petersburg, now is the time to make the switch.
Join the growing network of satisfied United Communications customers and see what a difference fiber broadband can make for your home or business. Call us today at 1-800-779-2227 or visit our service page to get started!