The UMVRDC staff authors a second successful Border to Border grant application for Federated Telephone. The UMVRDC’s staff continue to hone their grant writing skills and broadband knowledge while quickly becoming the go-to staff for cities and counties that have broadband questions, case study inquiries or need of help connecting with professionals in the broadband industry.
This year’s grant of $4,950,000 will allow Federated to deploy fiber to the eastern portions of Swift County and a small area in and around the City of Appleton. Last year Federated was awarded $3.9M to deploy fiber in the northern portion of Big Stone County. These projects will provide connectivity to areas in Big Stone and Swift Counties that were previously identified as unserved by the Minnesota Office of Broadband. As a result of these projects the region’s fiber footprint will expand significantly. High speed fiber broadband will help raise the bar on rural economic development allowing residents and businesses in these areas to compete and prosper in the global economy.
Today the UMVRDC staff are continuing to discuss broadband with a number of communities throughout the region. The City of Madison has recently contracted with the UMVRDC to explore the needs and community interest in high speed broadband options. The outcome of this project will help determine the demand and feasibility of bringing in high speed broadband options.
For questions about how the UMVRDC can help your community with broadband please contact Jacki Anderson at: jacki.anderson@umvrdc.org
“The project will deliver high-speed Internet service to 600 households, 425 businesses and 75 community institutions. The project area includes De Graff, Swift Falls and rural parts of eastern Swift County. The project touches 13 of the county’s 21 townships. Total project costs are $12.5 million. The remaining $7.5 million (60 percent local match) will be covered by a loan from Swift County to Federated.The project will help support community and economic development through job creation, business expansion and newly possibly business start-up opportunities. More than 500 jobs are expected to be created over the next few years, related to farming, home-based startups, commercial expansions and more. Nearly half of the county’s 800 farms are in the project area.” – Minnesota Office of Broadband
