Prinsburg is a small town with a population of about 500 in largely rural Kandiyohi County. Arvig had discussed various projects with the county over the years.
“Some were close to being successful,” Birkholz said. “This one came through.”
Arvig’s history with the county meant that when ARPA funding was allocated to the county and the city, it made sense for Arvig to reconvene with decision makers.
The ARPA included $350 billion for a Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund, which allocated specific amounts of funding to states, counties and cities that could be used for a variety of purposes, including broadband deployments.
As Birkholz explained, Arvig determined what it would cost to bring fiber broadband to each of the 220 locations in Prinsburg and what portion of the cost Arvig could cover. Arvig’s fiber distribution network reaches to within a few miles of Prinsburg, which helped minimize the cost.
Nevertheless, there was a gap of $550,000.
The solution was to create a public private partnership to build the network. The county earmarked $330,000 of its ARPA funding to the project and Prinsburg contributed $45,000 from its ARPA allocation. In addition, the city contributed $175,000 through a bond.
Plans call for Arvig to begin construction in Prinsburg no later than August 2022 and to complete the project by the end of the year.
Blandin on Broadband
News and information on broadband use, policy, and trends
Blandin on Broadband 