On Wednesday, the RUS and NTIA posted a searchable database of all applications received during the first funding round. You can download a full list of applicants or each by a couple of fields, such as state.
There were 28 applications from Minnesota. Here they are. (I hope in a month I’m writing about how they were all funded!)
| Applicant | Lake County |
| Two Harbors, MN | |
| Contact | Gary Fields |
| 651-343-3128 | |
| Project title | Lake County Fiber Project |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 11,050,770 |
| Loan request | $ 22,436,409 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The Project will be the first rural county fiber network in the U.S. to fully serve every home and institution that is currently served by wired telephone or electrical service. The advanced services offered will be priced lower than the very limited services currently available. The Project will be a public-private partnership between Lake County and National Public Broadband, a non-profit org. |
| Applicant | Minnesota Valley Television Improvement Corporation |
| GRANITE FALLS, MN | |
| Contact | Daniel Richter |
| 320-564-4970 | |
| Project title | Minnesota Wireless Expansion |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 562,776 |
| Loan request | $ 562,776 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | MVTV Wireless is proposing to continue building out it’s two-way broadband internet network to un-served and underserved areas of west central and south central Minnesota. The proposed project will add 34 additional WIMAX Access Points in 34 un-served and underserved communities adjacent and contiguous to its current service area. |
| Applicant | Arrowhead Fiber, Inc |
| Owatonna, MN | |
| Contact | Donny Smith |
| 507-214-1000 | |
| Project title | Arrowhead Regional Last Mile Project |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 23,017,861 |
| Loan request | $ 5,754,466 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Provide broadband connectivity to every business and residence in this part of the Arrowhead region. This will be provided on a state of the art fiber to the home system capable of gigabit delivery. All premises including homes, anchor institutions and businesses will have these services available. |
| Applicant | C. K. Blandin Foundation |
| Grand Rapids, MN | |
| Contact | Bernadine Joselyn |
| 218-327-8728 | |
| Project title | Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Sustainable Broadband Adoption |
| Grant request | $ 4,858,219 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities (MIRC) initiative is a comprehensive, multi-sector approach to sustainable broadband adoption. Through education, training, technical assistance and barrier removal, an array of market development strategies will provide opportunity to residents, small businesses, local governments, and critical needs providers in rural Minnesota. |
| Applicant | Arvig Telephone Company |
| Pequot Lakes, MN | |
| Contact | Timothy Ulrich |
| 608-664-4114 | |
| Project title | Arvig Telephone Company: Project to serve rural, remote and unserved establishments |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 7,358,993 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Arvig Telephone Company, a subsidiary of TDS Telecom, proposes a project to bring high speed DSL broadband service to remote, unserved households within its rural service territory, which is comparable to the DSL service provided in its more populated areas. The network is also engineered so that it can be easily upgraded at a reasonable cost to meet future needs. |
| Applicant | Mille Lacs Energy Cooperative |
| Aitkin, MN | |
| Contact | John Pierson |
| 218-927-2191 | |
| Project title | Mille Lacs Energy Wireless Broadband |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 1,679,650 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | MLEC is proposing a terrestrial fixed wireless system to provide broadband Internet to 5 remote and unserved areas in north central Minnesota. The technology used will be unlicensed 3.65GHz WiMax. With this technology MLEC will be capable of providing speeds up to 5 MB to the end user. The total cost of the project is estimated at $1,679,650. The amount requested from BIP is 100% grant. |
| Applicant | Tekstar Communications, Inc |
| Perham, MN | |
| Contact | Mark Birkholz |
| 218-346-8868 | |
| Project title | Naytahwaush Project |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 1,103,397 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Naytahwaush is located in rural Mahnomen County 15 miles east of the county seat on the White Earth Indian Reservation. A successful broadband project in this rural remote Unserved area will serve 315 households, total population 534. Also serving all community anchors including critical facilities, medical, public safety services, tribal government buildings, and the school will be served. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Mid-State Telephone Company |
| New London, MN | |
| Contact | Timothy Ulrich |
| 608-664-4114 | |
| Project title | Mid-State Telephone Company: Project to serve rural, remote and unserved establishments |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 8,376,308 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Mid-State Telephone Company, a subsidiary of TDS Telecom, proposes a project to bring high speed DSL broadband service to remote, unserved households within its rural service territory, which is comparable to the DSL service provided in its more populated areas. The network is also engineered so that it can be easily upgraded at a reasonable cost to meet future needs. |
| Applicant | Regents of the University of Minnesota |
| Minneapolis, MN | |
| Contact | Kevin McKoskey |
| 612-624-5599 | |
| Project title | Broadband Access Project |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Public Computer Center |
| Grant request | $ 2,862,334 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The Broadband Access Project will eliminate directly the disparity in broadband awareness and use in four federally designated poverty zones in the Twin Cities. The Universit of Minnesota will provide broadband training to vulnerable populations to gain information about education, health care, and job opportunities. Increased broadband access and usage, and job creation will result in these areas |
| Applicant | Hiawatha Broadband Communications, Inc. |
| Winona, MN | |
| Contact | Gary Evans |
| 507-474-5800 | |
| Project title | Southeastern Minnesota Last-Mile Project |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 5,729,891 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This project will provide last-mile service to Minneiska, Miesville, New Trier, areas in Lake City and Red Wing, in addition to constructing middle-mile connections between the five communities and Hiawatha Broadband’s network termination in Wabasha. The farm service area connections will offer broadband services to an additional 215 underserved homes and farmsteads along the route. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | A-Vu Media Corporation |
| Minnetonka, MN | |
| Contact | John Goodman |
| 612-839-2329 | |
| Project title | A-Vu Media – new bundled broadband for Older Adults, Disabled, and HealthCare Adoption |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Sustainable Broadband Adoption |
| Grant request | $ 9,431,000 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | A highly simplified user interface facilitates preprogrammed direct access to broadband and other services delivered though an integrated digital “TV”. All services are remotely programmed and controlled by a 24/7 customer service operator on a secure network. This network creates new high value connections for the users and all those providing healthcare and other broadband based services. |
| Applicant | Federated Telephone Cooperative |
| Chokio, MN | |
| Contact | Kevin Beyer |
| 320-324-7111 | |
| Project title | FTC – Appleton, Madison and Rural Morris MN |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 6,783,111 |
| Loan request | $ 6,783,111 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This project consists of building a FTTP system to deploy voice, video, and data services to the exchanges of Appleton, Madison, and rural Morris Minnesota. |
| Applicant | Cook County, Minnesota |
| Grand Marais, MN | |
| Contact | Danna Mackenzie |
| 218-387-3662 | |
| Project title | Cook County Fiber Initiative |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 33,658,409 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This grant application is being filed by the Cook County, Minnesota. Cook County proposes to build and operate a ‘fiber-to-the-premises” broadband communications network to bring broadband to the unserved areas in Cook County. The County plans to bring a triple play network to the County, bringing high speed Internet access to the service area for the first time plus competition with video and voi |
| Applicant | Northeast Service Cooperative |
| Mountain Iron, MN | |
| Contact | Lyle MacVey |
| 218-748-7623 | |
| Project title | Northeast Minnesota Middle Mile Project |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Middle Mile |
| Grant request* | $ 32,135,681 |
| Loan request | $ 11,362,539 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The Northeast Service Cooperative in partnership with state & local agencies, schools & health care organizations will implement a middle mile project to make dark fiber, wavelength services available to private sector providers in rural areas of northeast Minnesota. The project will improve access to critical education & health care services to 20,000 households which lack broadband services. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | County Wide FTTH, Inc. |
| Owatonna, MN | |
| Contact | Donny Smith |
| 507-214-1000 | |
| Project title | County Wide Fiber Project for Steele and Dodge Counties in Minnesota |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 24,073,840 |
| Loan request | $ 24,073,841 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This project will provide high speed broadband access to every home, business, government entity, and anchor institution in the entire county of Steele, the entire county of Dodge with the exception of an area already served by an existing incumbent provider. This project will be an open access network that will deliver current speeds in excess of 20 mbps and the capacity of 1 gbps per user. |
| Applicant | Small Town Fiber, Inc. |
| Owatonna, MN | |
| Contact | Donny Smith |
| 507-214-1000 | |
| Project title | Small Town Fiber |
| Program | BIP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request | $ 13,047,125 |
| Loan request | $ 13,047,127 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This project is being submitted with the hopes of serving a few small towns that have no access to broadband at all and a few more that have very limited access. This would be a state of the art passive fiber optic network. |
| Applicant | Carver County Fiber Collaboration, Inc. |
| Owatonna, MN | |
| Contact | Donny Smith |
| 507-214-1000 | |
| Project title | Carver County Fiber Collaboration |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Middle Mile |
| Grant request* | $ 4,770,776 |
| Loan request | $ 4,770,778 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This is a collaborative effort between Carver County and Jaguar Communications to put in a county wide middle mile ring to serve each town and township within the county and connect to the existing Jaguar ring in Scott County. This ring will be used to provide services to many different anchor institutions including libraries, law enforcement, and government centers as well as broadband providers. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Halstad Telephone Company |
| Halstad, MN | |
| Contact | Thomas Maroney |
| 218-456-2125 | |
| Project title | HTC Hillsboro ND Rural FTTP |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 2,337,600 |
| Loan request | $ 2,337,600 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Halstad Telephone’s project will deploy fiber-to-the-premise broadband internet and video services to 430 locations in rural Hillsboro, Traill County, North Dakota, utilizing 283 miles of fiber optic cable and providing those locations with broadband capability of 100 Megabits. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | City of Windom |
| Windom, MN | |
| Contact | John Schultz |
| 651-967-7196 | |
| Project title | Southwest Minnesota Broadband Group (SWMBG) |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 6,350,250 |
| Loan request | $ 6,350,000 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | SWMBG is proposing to build fiber-to-the-premise infrastructure to eight rural communities throughout Southwestern Minnesota. The network will consist of a 125 mile fiber ring which will connect the eight communities and an FTTP infrastructure within the communities that will support a total of over 3,500 passings. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Halstad Telephone Company |
| Halstad, MN | |
| Contact | Thomas Maroney |
| 218-456-2125 | |
| Project title | HTC Hillsboro ND Town Broadband |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 246,500 |
| Loan request | $ 246,500 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Halstad Telephone’s project will install electronic enhancements to existing Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) to increase broadband capability to 100 Megabits for internet and video service to 800 locations in the town of Hillsboro, Traill County, North Dakota. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Halstad Telephone Company |
| Halstad, MN | |
| Contact | Thomas Maroney |
| 218-456-2125 | |
| Project title | HTC Crookston MN WiMax Wireless |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 317,250 |
| Loan request | $ 317,250 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Halstad Telephone’s project will install a Wireless Wimax broadband system in Crookston Minnesota to provide broadband to this underserved town and surrounding unserved 314 square miles of rural area. This system will provide up to 10 Megabit broadband service, operating on Halstad Telephone’s license. (FCC registration Number 0003744224,Call Sign WQIQ973 in the 2500 MHz band) |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Halstad Telephone Company |
| Halstad, MN | |
| Contact | Thomas Maroney |
| 218-456-2125 | |
| Project title | HTC Minnesota Exchanges FTTP |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 3,277,500 |
| Loan request | $ 3,277,500 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | Halstad Telephone will install Fiber-to-the-Premise broadband to 1,069 underserved locations in 5 towns and surrounding rural/farm areas in Norman and Polk Counties in Minnesota, utilizing 320 miles of fiber optic cable and providing those locations with broadband capability of 100 Megabits, thus converting an existing Fiber-to-the-Node system which does not meet the required service level. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Asian Media Access, Inc. |
| MINNEAPOLIS, MN | |
| Contact | David Kang |
| 612-376-7715 | |
| Project title | Asian Pacific American Community Network (APA ComMNet) Public Computer Center |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Public Computer Center |
| Grant request | $ 500,000 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The Asian Pacific American Community Network (APA ComMNet) Public Computer Center will be a technology access and training facility with 30 computers, a mobile lab of 15 computers, and media production equipment to mitigate the ever-growing digital divide. APA ComMNet will provide computer access and computer/IT/media training to under-served immigrant and refugee residents of the Twin Cities. |
| Applicant | City of Minneapolis |
| Minneapolis, MN | |
| Contact | Elizabeth Cousins |
| 612-673-2820 | |
| Project title | Broadband for Minneapolis Public Housing |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile |
| Grant request | $ 3,302,955 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The City of Minneapolis will bring broadband connectivity to the residents of Minneapolis Public Housing’s 41 high rises using a DSLAM network. Through use of rooftop transmitters connecting to the existing municipal WiFi network, the City of Minneapolis is able to empower these underserved residents with broadband capability for a minimal cost to both the government and to end-users. |
| Applicant | Mid-State Education District |
| Little Falls, MN | |
| Contact | Kay Campbell |
| 320-631-2515 | |
| Project title | Central Minnesota Rural Broadband Access |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Last Mile Non-Remote Area |
| Grant request* | $ 65,213,019 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The project will deliver advanced broadband solutions that enable County & City Government, MLB Ojibwe, K-12 & Higher Education, Healthcare, Law Enforcement, Community, Cultural & Arts Organizations, residents, businesses & visitors across our area to access high capacity Broadband services, decrease costs, enhance productivity & improve the economic & civic vitality of Central Minnesota. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe |
| Cass Lake, MN | |
| Contact | John Schultz |
| 651-967-7196 | |
| Project title | Leech Lake Community Computer Centers (CCC) |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Public Computer Center |
| Grant request | $ 1,581,252 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The Leech Lake Community Computer Centers Project (CCC) will bring four station computer centers to 13 Community Centers spread across the Leech Lake Indian Reservation in remote, rural Minnesota. This reservation is over 1100 square miles and transportation to a centralized computer center would not be an effective solution. This project is in concert with the Leech Lake WAN project. |
| Applicant | Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe |
| Cass Lake, MN | |
| Contact | John Schultz |
| 651-967-7196 | |
| Project title | Leech Lake WAN Project |
| Program | BIP/BTOP |
| Project type | Middle Mile |
| Grant request* | $ 4,148,870 |
| Loan request | $ 4,148,870 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | This project will connect Community Anchor Institutions across the Leech Lake Indian Reservation to bring health, public safety and human services across the reservation. This network will consist of a 115 mile fiber optic network with a WiMax overlay to reach outlying areas and provide public safety connectivity. |
| *For BIP/BTOP joint applications, grant amount reflects grant request for BIP. | |
| Applicant | City of Minneapolis |
| Minneapolis, MN | |
| Contact | Elizabeth Cousins |
| 612-673-2820 | |
| Project title | An Engaged Community, Minneapolis Public Housing |
| Program | BTOP |
| Project type | Sustainable Broadband Adoption |
| Grant request | $ 5,298,236 |
| Status | Received |
| Description | The City of Minneapolis’innovative Sustainable Adoption program will result in skilled, informed public housing broadband subscribers. This model can be replicated in any of the 3,200 public housing authorities across the United States. Communities can expect to decrease the racial, ethnic and socioeconomic barriers to jobs, skills training, health care, education and citizenship resources. |
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I am very excited to see the WIMAX implementation! This is truly a cost effective solution for reaching the rural population outside the range of wireless. I wonder if they will be posting their progress somewhere? I am very interested to see both the process and results. Thank you Ann for pulling this summary together, I sure appreciate it.
Ben