Green=served Purple=underesrved Red=unserved
Rank (from 100/20 megabits per second): 70
Code: Red
Annually, Blandin Foundation pulls together data from the Minnesota Office of Broadband Development and broadband news to gauge progress toward the state broadband goals (25 megabits per second download/3 Mbps upload by 2022 and 100 Mbps/20 Mbps by 2026). Leaders can use this information to improve broadband access and use in their communities. To see how the state is doing overall, or to compare counties, visit the Blandin Foundation interactive map. Or check out past years’ reports: 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
McLeod County: no grants, needs help
McLeod County’s ranking has been slipping over the years. Their percentage covered has dipped as well. They have never received a MN Border to Border grant. Looking at recent history it appears as if their greatest strides forward have been through RS Fiber and Meeker Coop expanding service. If they want to meet the 2026 goal, they will likely need to mobilize to make a plan for better service.
Broadband Access:
| 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
| 100/20 (2026 goal) | 56.13 | 58.59 | 58.57 | 56.92 |
| 25/3 (2022 goal) | 87.32 | 81.01 | 83.53 | 98.58 |
| County | Households with computer | …with desktop or laptop | …with a smartphone | …with a tablet et al | …with other |
| State of MN | 90.3% | 81.1% | 76.5% | 59.3% | 3.5% |
| McLeod | 88.2% | 79.9% | 71.2% | 56.1% | 3.8% |
What we learned in the past:
In summer 2019, RS Fiber announced completed construction of gigabit Fiber to the Premise networks in 10 communities located in Renville, Sibley, McLeod, and Nicollet Counties of west central Minnesota.
Update from 2020:
Late in 2019, Meeker Cooperative announced a new service, Vibrant Broadband, which is approximately 50 Mbps upload and 8 Mbps down to several counties, including McLeod.
Checklist:
- Find more articles on broadband in McLeod County (http://tinyurl.com/hx65gqh)
- 100/20 Mbps ranking: 70 (down 6)
- Has worked with Blandin: no
- Has received a MN Broadband grant: no
- Household density: 28.9
Details:
- Districts: CD 7
Senate: 18
House: 18A, 18B - Find your reps
I am doing the annual look at broadband in each county – based on maps from the Office of Broadband Development and news gathered from the last year. I’m looking at progress toward the 2022 (25 Mbps down and 3 Mbps up) and 2026 (100 Mbps down and 20 Mbps up) and will code each:
- Red (yikes)
- Yellow (warning)
- Green (good shape)