Expanding Wireless Broadband Access for Rural Minnesota

Expanding Wireless Broadband Access for Rural Minnesota
GMNP has advocated for state programs and policy changes that will assist Minnesota residents in accessing broadband internet service, including creating the Low Population Density Grant Program and revising Border-to-Border grants programs.
Goal of this initiative: ensure more Minnesotans have access to high-speed internet connections that support virtual education, telehealth services, gaming and work-from-home opportunities.
1. Connecting to the Cloud
Access to high speed internet is essential to many types of jobs and daily activities, particularly those performed remotely from urban environments. Without sufficient speeds, rural residents fall behind their urban counterparts. Internet service providers such as Arvig invest millions annually evaluating potential locations for network expansion or upgrades with the goal of offering cutting-edge broadband services throughout Minnesota’s rural communities.
Arvig evaluates various factors before working closely with local leaders, community organizations and state agencies to implement its plans. Delivering broadband service in rural areas may seem complex at first, but with strong partnerships it can become reality. In Pine County for instance, Kandiyohi County Board of Commissioners and Prinsburg City officials used American Rescue Plan economic stimulus funds and collaborated with Arvig to construct a fiber network which now gives residents up to 1 Gbps home Internet speeds and 10 Gbps business connections respectively.
With gig-level speeds, residents have the ability to meet work demands and stay connected to the world. This is particularly important in rural areas where lack of internet connectivity may impede health care delivery via telemedicine and electronic health records, banking, e-commerce, education and entertainment services – among others.
The Greater Minnesota Partnership (GMNP) is working hard to ensure all Greater Minnesota communities can connect to high speed internet at speeds they need in order to thrive. Through advocacy and taking advantage of available federal and state funds like Border-to-Border Broadband Grant Program and Line Extension Connection Program grants, progress is being made toward expanding internet access throughout Minnesota.
2. Streaming Video
Streaming video services have become an essential service in rural households and businesses alike. For some, streaming is their only means of seeing loved ones who live far away; for others it keeps them connected with work or school. Unfortunately, streaming requires high Internet speeds in order to play online games seamlessly.
Internet providers understand that rural communities require fast, reliable connectivity in order to be productive and competitive in today’s globalized society. By building relationships with local leaders to gauge interest and input while taking advantage of federal and state funding resources available to expand rural internet access, steady progress is being made towards expanding rural internet access.
As part of their public-private partnership, RS Fiber Cooperative in rural Sibley County is installing fiber optic cable with 1 gigabit per second capacity as part of a public-private partnership project that will bring broadband speeds to 6,200 homes and businesses throughout most of Sibley and Renville Counties when completed.
Enhanced A-CAM’s project areas are on track to meet their new targets of 100 megabits per second download and 20 megabits per second upload speed for eligible project areas, providing families and businesses access to virtual education, telehealth services and other innovations that cut time and travel costs.
This project will raise 10 cities and 17 townships above the state’s current target for wired connections that meet at least 10 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload speeds – enough for basic online tasks such as email and video chatting – providing rural residents with more freedom to enjoy video, music and gaming without fear of exceeding their data cap or losing connectivity.
3. Staying Connected
At work and play, internet connectivity has become essential. Unfortunately, however, not everyone is able to keep pace in rural communities where accessing fast Gig-level internet may leave residents behind.
Cellular wireless is a great alternative for many, but it cannot replace fast broadband service. Without reliable broadband service, people struggle to maintain essential services and activities such as virtual education, telehealth services, streaming video services such as Netflix and gaming as well as remote work opportunities. According to recent estimates from Minnesota alone, nearly 25% of households lack sufficient broadband service.
Access to broadband is both a necessity and economic driver for rural residents. Benefits of high-speed connectivity for these rural residents include greater employment opportunities, enhanced health outcomes and more. Without broadband access, those living in low income households and people of color tend to have fewer job options and access to public resources like health care, online banking services, education or government services can become significantly limited.
Although providing broadband to rural areas remains a significant challenge, according to Blandin on Broadband blog, steady progress is being made. Arvig, Minnesota’s largest independent ISP, boasts an expanding fiber network connecting over 43 rural communities; using funds provided through an American Rescue Plan grant for expansion purposes. Furthermore, their line extension connection program grants enable funding of infrastructure into unserved locations where fiber passes close but doesn’t connect – helping cover the costs associated with expanding service to unserved locations.
Rep. Angie Craig introduced a bipartisan bill, the Secure and Affordable Broadband Extension Act, that will provide rural communities with broadband access they deserve. It will add $6 billion for the Affordable Connectivity Program which partially expired this year.
4. Streaming Music
Broadband was initially touted as the solution to “the death of distance,” providing video conferencing, telemedicine and other forms of connectivity without incurring expensive travel costs. Unfortunately, rural communities that can’t access this technology feel left out and ignored.
Two Harbors is one rural community taking full advantage of broadband. High-speed Internet allows students to take classes taught from instructors at MacPhail Center for Music in Minneapolis via online classes; location no longer needs to be an obstacle when seeking advanced education.
Broadband is also helping businesses remain productive and competitive, with agriculture as a prime example: GPS-enabled sensors enable farmers to monitor herds across miles apart by tracking health, feed, and water levels for increased efficiency and reduced risks.
Broadband is an invaluable convenience for Greater Minnesotans. In a recent survey, respondents ranked email as their primary activity online, followed by weather information, news sites and research purchases. On average, rural households spend 4.2 hours daily browsing the Web compared with just over 4.6 for metro Minnesota residents.
Solution to Minnesota’s broadband gap should not be seen as either/or: fiber and wireless technologies will likely need to co-exist to meet all Greater Minnesota communities’ internet needs and desires, then create an affordable network that is upgradable in the future. Working closely with community leaders is key here – working out their needs and developing plans accordingly is what counts!
Arvig understands the challenges associated with rural broadband and are making strides to address them. Each year, Arvig conducts an assessment in its service area to identify where a fiber network could be built, working closely with city officials and county leaders to devise a viable plan for construction.
5. Accessing Government Services
Owing to internet’s importance in modern life, more rural Minnesota households than you realize still lack high speed service. Pine County in particular stands out as having more than one third of households that do not possess either a computer or internet subscription – this figure echoes across more than half the state (northwest, northeast, southwest and west central regions combined), where over one seventh do not possess internet in either their homes or businesses.
Internet service providers are taking an aggressive approach to increasing broadband access for these communities, making progress possible by developing relationships with local leaders, gauge interest in broadband expansion and receive input from residents as well as capitalizing on federal and state funds available for expansion. By building relationships between themselves and local leaders as well as seeking input from citizens via surveys. With their partnership comes more access for modern life: work, learning, health care services etc.
Prinsburg, Minnesota saw a group of community leaders and local volunteers come together to apply for American Rescue Plan funds and use this grant to fund a fiber project that now spans 170 miles to benefit over 400 rural locations – providing gig-level speeds for online learning, virtual telehealth services, and more.
Additionally, Minnesota is offering assistance through its Border-to-Border Broadband Development grant program and county grants that is helping bridge rural connectivity gaps. For more information about this initiative, visit the Office of Broadband Development’s broadband resource page, view their map or sign up here for updates about broadband developments in your area. The Blandin Foundation Rural Pulse survey showed that high internet speeds correlate to stronger incomes, decreased unemployment and an increase in jobs within rural Minnesota communities.