Rank: 14
Code: Green
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)

Polk County: Still closing in on top 10

Polk County ranks 14 (up two points) for broadband access out of 87 counties. They have 97.79 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up. They have 278 households without access to broadband at that speed. Estimates indicate that it will cost $2.5 million to get to ubiquitous broadband in the county.

They have had incremental improvement since we have been tracking, landing 95.24 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up in 2021 to 60.36 percent coverage in 2022.

In December 2022, Garden Valley Technologies received a Border to Border grant to serve 47 unserved households, 2 unserved businesses, 52 unserved farms and 4 unserved community/anchor institutions for a total of 105 locations within three areas located in northwest Minnesota and include portions of the Higdem, Esther, Brislet, Angus, Helgeland and Brandt Townships in Polk County and portions of Oak Park, McCrea and Comstock townships in Marshall county. In 2023, they received $1.5 million to serve 96 unserved and underserved households, businesses, farms and community anchor institutions.

Garden Valley Telephone Company has applied for funds in the latest (and open) round of Border to Border grants. They will learn the results in early 2024.

Their coverage and continued efforts keep Polk County in green ranking.

Grants

• 2023: Garden Valley Technologies – 2023 Rural Warren SW – GRANT $1,488,322
• 2022: Garden Valley Technologies – Rural Warren East & Rural Oslo – GRANT $1,462,569
• 2016 – HALSTAD TELEPHONE COMPANY KERTSONVILLE AREA – GRANT: $296,665
• 2015 – Halstad Telephone Company – Gentilly Township – Grant award: $424,460
• 2014 – Halstad Telephone Co., Halstad Tract MN 11902500 FTTH Amount $1.65 million
• 2019: Halstad Telephone Company – Rural East Grand Forks Expansion Project – GRANT $440,000

• MN State Grants awarded in 2021: Garden Valley Technologies – Northwest Thief River Falls and Euclid – GRANT $1,640,722 This middle and last mile project will serve 104 unserved and 22 underserved locations in portions of Marshall and Polk counties.

• Halstad Telephone Company – North Fisher Expansion – GRANT $619,000 This last mile project will upgrade approximately 57 unserved and seven underserved locations in portions of Huntsville, Nesbit and Fanny townships in Polk County.
• Wikstrom Telephone Co. Inc. – Wiktel NW MN Broadband 2020 – GRANT $490,997 The last mile project will serve 153 unserved locations in sparsely populated areas in Kittson, Marshall and Polk counties.

Find more articles on broadband in Polk County (http://tinyurl.com/zk8apgm)

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)

The maps below on the left comes from the Office of Broadband Development interactive map, reflecting data updated on Oct 31, 2023. Red dots represent locations unserved with wireline broadband; the Orange dots represent underserved locations. The map on the right comes from the FCC National Broadband map showing access to wired and licensed fixed wireless access, the darker the color, the greater percentage of broadband coverage.