That mysterious building on State Street with the secured entrance is getting an upgrade

HVAC equipment being lifted to the roof of the Verizon CO on State St

It has very small windows, no signage and a secured entrance on State State Street, but that doesn’t mean this brick building doesn’t get upgraded from time-to-time.  It’s none other than the Verizon Central Office (CO) that provides much of the telephone and Internet/Tv to many homes and businesses in the area.  I’ve never been inside this one, but have been in others that are setup almost exactly the same.  Inside you’ll see racks of telecommunications switching gear, wires/cables, and a constant hum of either heating or cooling – mostly cooling.  

These days, COs like the one in Media are evolving into the internet age and are moving from circuit switched networks to pure Internet Protocol ones, which is what most of telephone and TV are traveling over.  The technology has changed so much that quite a few of these facilities are consolidated to cut costs. 

I wasn’t sure what the future held for this location, but it looks like they are here to say.  This week they were busy installing a new Heating/Ventilation/AC system (HVAC) and not too long ago, a new generator exhaust.