Almost 20 percent of Greater Minnesota households don’t have the same broadband connections as urban area residents. That’s about to change.

New grants totaling $34 million for 42 broadband infrastructure projects will level the playing field, expanding job, education and health opportunities for thousands of Minnesotans through access to reliable, affordable high-speed internet.

Minnesota’s Border-to-Border Broadband Development Program, located within DEED’s Office of Broadband Development, provides internet providers grants to expand broadband service to unserved or underserved areas of Minnesota. The funding pays for up to 50 percent of the cost of developing broadband for improved high-speed internet.

“Broadband is an important economic development tool that will improve people’s quality of life and make businesses more competitive,” said DEED Commissioner Shawntera Hardy.

The projects include:

Northeast

Mediacom, Fayal Township – $263,345
Mediacom, Harris Township – $224,369
Mille Lacs Energy Cooperative FTTP Project – $1.76 million
Paul Bunyan Communications, Hubbard, Becker and Itasca Counties – $1.74 million

Northwest

CenturyLink, Thief River Middle Mile – $1.32 million
Garden Valley Telephone Co., Rural Thief River Falls East – $2.03 million
Halstad Telephone Co., Kertsonville Area – $296,665
Sjoberg’s Inc., Roseau and Lake of the Woods Counties – $354,740
Wikstrom Telephone Co. (with Beamco Inc.), Rural Alvarado – $43,481
Wikstrom Telephone Co., Wiktel NW MN – $950,823

West Central

Consolidated Telecommunications Co., Kandiyohi County – $4.94 million
Frontier, Kandiyohi Initiative – $1.02 million
Gardonville Cooperative Telephone, Douglas County Lake Louise – $68,240
Otter Tail Telcom, Battle Lake – $238,170
Otter Tail Telcom, Fergus Falls Area – $279,271
Runestone Telephone, Holmes City 2 – $700,674
West Central Telephone Association, Wadena Rural North – $718,850

East Central

Albany Mutual Telephone Association, Big Watab Lake – $726,185
Benton Cooperative Telephone Co., Bock – $510,000
Benton Cooperative Telephone Co., Buckman – $276,230
Benton Cooperative Telephone Co., Ramey – $225,100
Mediacom, Medina – $170,868
Palmer Wireless, Big Lake Industrial Park – $90,988
Palmer Wireless, Del Tone Road and St. Cloud Airport – $179,400
Sunrise Township (CenturyLink), Fiber to the Home – $1.07 million
TDS Telecom, Cass and Crow Wing Counties – $3 million

Southwest

Arvig - Redwood County Telephone, Middle Mile Fiber Extension – $27,998
Granada Telephone Co. (dba BEVCOMM), South Rural Granada – $157,920
Lismore Cooperative Telephone Co., Nobles County Broadband – $2.94 million
Martin County (with Frontier), Rural Broadband Initiative – $1.68 million
Midco, Canby to Marshall Middle Mile and Last Mile in Porter - Taunton - Minneota - Ghent – $623,000
New Ulm Telecom Inc., Hanska – $200,397
Renville County, Hiawatha Broadband Communications & RS Fiber – $807,966
Woodstock Telephone, Westbrook – $412,391

Southeast

AcenTek, Rural Lanesboro Fiber Build – $1.78 million
Blue Earth Valley Telephone Co. (dba BEVCOMM), Rural Winnebago – $152,828
Cannon Valley Telecom Inc. (dba BEVCOMM), Rural Freeborn – $150,700
Eckles Telephone Co. (dba BEVCOMM), Rural Heidelberg – $188,000
KMTelecom, Rural Mantorville – $764,663
New Ulm Telecom Inc., Goodhue - Bellechester – $332,328
New Ulm Telecom Inc., Mazeppa – $317,761
Winona County, Pickwick Area – $416,640

For the complete news release, including detailed project descriptions, go here.

View a map of the 42 broadband infrastructure projects funded during the 2017 grant cycle.