Rank: 17
Code: Green
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)
Olmsted County: almost there
Olmsted County ranks 17 for broadband access and 5 for digital equity out of 87 counties. They have had slow steady progress since 2019, landing at 94.38 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up in 2021 to 60.36 percent coverage in 2022. They have 3893 households without access to broadband at that speed. Estimates indicate that it will cost $36.2 million to get to ubiquitous broadband in the county.
| County | Housing Unit Density | Number of Housing Units | 100/20 Mbps | houses unserved | Cost to close the gap |
| Olmsted | 105.6 | 69,270 | 94.38 | 3893 | $ 36,204,658.20 |
Olmsted County will benefit from a border to border grant announced in December 2022:
- Kasson & Mantorville Telephone Company, $1,620,007.00
Olmsted County is nearly there, which is why they retain the green code. They are the home of the Mayo Clinic, which acts as an anchor for providers looking to expand service.
Broadband Access:
| 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
| 100/20 (2026 goal) | 94.38 | 93.9 | 92.87 | 92.66 | 41.29 | 34 |
| 25/3 (2022 goal) | 95.41 | 95.88 | 95.74 | 94.63 | 93.7 | 97.75 |
Digital Equity:
Olmsted County ranks 5 out of 87 for digital equity. (See full Digital Equity Profile)
Olmsted County ranks 8 out of 87 for computer ownership. 96.2 percent of homes have a computer of device as compared to statewide ownership of 95.5 percent.
Past grants:
- 2016 – KMTELECOM RURAL MANTORVILLE – GRANT: $764,663
- 2019: BEVCOMM (Pine Island Telephone Company) – NE Pine Island Fiber Project Phase I – GRANT $222,222
- MN State Grants awarded in 2021: Charter Communications (Spectrum) – Cambridge Hills – GRANT $28,950 This middle and last mile project will serve approximately 41 unserved households in Marion Township in Olmsted County.
- KMTelecom – Rock Dell Northwest Fiber Build – GRANT $385,173 This last mile project will serve approximately 125 unserved locations in the rural Ashland and Vernon townships in Dodge County and Salem Township in Olmsted County.
Checklist:
- Find more articles on broadband in Olmsted County (http://tinyurl.com/gmslyhe)
- 100/20 Mbps ranking: 17 (same)
- Has worked with Blandin: no
- Has received a MN Broadband grant: yes
- Household density: 105.6
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)
Blandin on Broadband 