In Michigan the Upper Peninsula Community faces challenges when it comes to expanding broadband opportunities in terms of location, size, and scattered development pattern. Marquette County has become the first Upper Peninsula Community and the 11th in the state to be certified as a connected community as a result of the community developing a broadband and technology action plan.
The technology action plan’s goal is to improve digital learning, support new technology initiatives in the schools, develop a business case for further broadband expansion, and promote telemedicine in remote areas of the county.
To develop the plan, the Marquette County Broadband Initiative team worked with “Connect Michigan” www.connectmycommunity.org to identify gaps in the local broadband landscape and to establish goals to expand broadband access, adoption, and use.
Connect Michigan is a partnership between the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) www.michigan.gov/mspc and Connected Nation www.connectednation.org to map broadband availability and promote the adoption and use of broadband and related technologies in the state.
The project includes mapping and verification of broadband availability data, broadband research and planning, and in addition, provide community outreach to tell communities about the benefits of broadband.
In another state, the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) http://mn.gov/deed has awarded broadband grants totaling $19.4 million. The funding will help 17 communities in the state develop broadband infrastructure to service 6.095 households, 83 community institutions, 160 businesses in unserved or underserved regions of the state.
DEED awarded the funding from their “Border-to-Border Broadband Development Grant Program” www.mn.gov/deed/programs-services/broadband/grant-program which was signed into law last May. The grants provide up to 50 percent of the cost of developing broadband for improved high-speed internet in communities across the state.
One award for $5 million went to the Rock County Broadband Alliance to deploy fiber-to-the-premises service for about 1,085 underserved and 265 unserved locations in Rock County. This is especially important because this county needs to rely on broadband for healthcare to help both patients and healthcare professionals.