Rank: 48
Code:  Yellow
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)

Nobles County: ReConnect funding will help reach goals

Nobles County ranks 48 (down 10 places) for broadband access out of 87 counties. Nobles County has seen slow progress. They saw a small bump last year but no improvements this year. They will benefit from a 2024 MN State grant; hopefully that will help them see improvements in the coming year. 

Nobles County retains yellow ranking.

• Over the years, Nobles County (or cities within) has invested $50,000 (total) for matches for 1 successful MN Broadband grants. This is an indicator of local government that is engaged and (literally) invested in better, local broadband.
• Nobles County will benefit from a 2024 $208,598 MN Broadband grant award that will serve 113 locations.
• Nobles County will not benefit from any line extension awards.
• Last years’ estimates indicated that it would cost $9.4 million to get ubiquitous broadband in the county. (I haven’t updated the number because recent report offers scenarios of costs based on BEAD funding rules that make current estimates less predictable than in the past. Yet, I think the number is still helpful.)
• In 2022, Nobles ranked 69 using Microsoft’s Digital Equity Tool, which looks at various factors of a community.

2024 Grants

• County: Nobles
  Lismore Cooperative Telephone Co City of Bigelow FTTP
  Grant: $208,598
  Local Match: $486,730
  Total Budget: $695,328
  The Lismore Cooperative Telephone Co. project will see the establishment and operation of a Fiber to the Premise (FTTP) network, aimed at bridging the digital divide in the rural City of Bigelow, in Nobles County. The proposed project area encompasses approximately 4.16 miles of last mile buried fiber and fiber drop cabling, serving 113 locations, 19 of which are unserved and 94 underserved. Funding partners are Nobles County $35,000, and City of Bigelow $15,000.

Past Grants

• 2023: Lismore Cooperative Telephone Company ReConnect grant: $13,688,114 and loan: $5,723,996
• 2016 LISMORE COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE NOBLES COUNTY BROADBAND – GRANT: $2,944,578
• 2015 – MVTV Wireless Middle Mile – Grant award: $808,080

Find more articles on broadband in Nobles County (http://tinyurl.com/j52xvxu)

The maps below on the left comes from the Office of Broadband Development interactive map, reflecting data updated on December 16, 2024. Red dots represent locations unserved locations. Above I have tracked wireline access because that is the Minnesota definition of broadband. The info below includes wired and wireless. BEAD includes fixed wireless connections as served locations. (I wrote more on the distinction between the two last year, which may be if interest in the numbers range greatly for your county.)

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)