Rank:  56
Code: Yellow
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)

Douglas County: Border to Border grants seem to push them forward

Douglas County has benefited from quite a few Border to Border grants. In 2018, they saw a great improvement; improvement has been small but steady since.

Douglas County will benefit from a few MN State Grants awarded in 2021:

• Arvig (Tekstar Communications, Inc.) – Lake Osakis, Sauk Lake & Smith Lake Project – GRANT $486,458 This middle and last mile project will upgrade approximately 230 unserved and 39 underserved locations in Todd and Douglas counties.
• Charter Communications (Spectrum) – West Lake Carlos – GRANT $24,450
  This middle and last mile project will serve approximately 42 unserved households on the west side of Lake Carlos in Douglas County.
• Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association – Douglas County – County Road 34 FTTH Project – GRANT $1,551,370 This last mile project will serve 71 unserved and 544 underserved locations in Ida and Carlos townships in Douglas County.
• Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association – Douglas County – Hazel Hill Road FTTH Project – GRANT $692,929 This middle and last mile project will serve 212 unserved households, 79 unserved businesses and one unserved farm in Alexandria Township in Douglas County.
• Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association – Douglas County – Town Hall Road FTTH Project – GRANT $90,251 This last mile project will serve 46 unserved and 3 underserved locations in La Grand Township in Douglas County

Projected allocation of American Recovery Project ARP funds in Douglas is $7,397,212; broadband is one possible use. Because there are providers who have been focused on improvement is seems like they might be able to make that happen and will continue on incremental improvements; that is why they get a code yellow.

Broadband Access:

Computer Access:

Past grants:

• 2017 – Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association – Douglas County: Country Estates FTTH Project – GRANT $101,624
• 2017 – Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association – Douglas County: Pospisil Drive FTTH Project – GRANT $54,155
• 2016 – GARDONVILLE COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE DOUGLAS COUNTY LAKE LOUISE – GRANT: $68,240
• 2016 – RUNESTONE TELEPHONE HOLMES CITY 2 — GRANT: $700,674
• 2015 – Runestone Telephone Association – Holmes City – Grant award: $189,990
• 2019: Charter Communications – Lake Carlos Project – GRANT $74,540
• 2019: Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association – Krohnfeldt Drive FTTH Project – GRANT $42,921
• 2019: Runestone Telecom Association – South Alexandria Project – GRANT $1,760,423

Checklist:

• Find more articles on broadband in Douglas County. (http://tinyurl.com/jqpohsc)
• 100/20 Mbps ranking: 59 (down 3 places)
• Has worked with Blandin: no
• Has received a MN Broadband grant: yes
• Household density: 22.55

Details:

• Districts: CD 7
  Senate: 8, 12
  House: 8B, 12A, 12B
• 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)