The following was publilshed in the Blandin Broadband eNews…

Coleman’s Corner

The Connect Minnesota maps and reports http://connectmn.org/ are opening the eyes of many across the state, especially those at the bottom of the connectivity lists. Some of those counties may be on the way to solving their problems through stimulus funds – Cook, Lac qui Parle and Lake. Others are just beginning the task to ensure countywide compliance with the 10-20 Mb state broadband goal. (A side note: for a while, I was defaulting to the lower speed, but now I am promoting 15 Mb by 2015 as the goal).

Sibley County has completed a countywide fiber to the premise feasibility study. I am working on initial assessments and discussions with Redwood and Kanabec Counties. Todd County is also in on the pursuit of quality broadband, in their case, reportedly at the urging of the county cattleman’s association. Even cows want fiber, I guess!

Just as the recent MN Rural Partners report http://wp.me/p3if7-1dk indicates that the metro has significant interdependence with greater Minnesota, rural community leaders are recognizing that it is not enough for county seat cities to be well-connected. Last week at a community meeting in Mora, county seat of Kanabec County, the banker, the hospital and the schools all indicated the need to connect to consumers in the outlying areas. The hospital representative told of the need for quality broadband in rural areas so that prospective physicians can enjoy a full range of housing choices when comparing Mora to other rural locations, all of which are trying to attract new doctors.

We have had great representation from area telecommunications companies, large and small, in both Redwood and Kanabec County meetings. There is a shared understanding by all that strictly private market forces cannot finance new rural telecommunications networks. High costs, low revenues and short investment horizons combine as a triple whammy. Absent new federal broadband stimulus funds, it will be up to these rural counties to identify and implement models that work!

Bill Coleman helps communities make the connection between telecommunications and economic development. As principal in Community Technology Advisors http://tinyurl.com/3f4dx7g for ten years, he assists community, foundation and corporate clients develop and implement programs of broadband infrastructure investment and technology promotion and training. Bill is working with the Blandin Foundation on the MIRC Initiative http://tinyurl.com/2c6mhh4, Community Broadband Resource Programhttp://tinyurl.com/cseu7e and other broadband projects.