Broadband is in the news in Willmar this week. Wednesday, I wrote about the Willmar City Council to meet with Charter Communications despite having plans with Hometown Fiber on an open access network.

Thursday, the West Central Tribune followed up with

The Willmar City Council on Monday learned how the $24.5 million Connect Willmar Initiative may affect the bottom line for the city and taxpayers.

The Connect Willmar Initiative is the plan to construct a city-owned fiber-optic broadband network throughout the city. The network will be managed by Hometown Fiber and will allow multiple internet service providers to use the network to serve customers. The ISPs will pay a fee to the city for use of the network.

The city plans to construct the network using bonds. Revenues from the fees charged to the ISPs will be used to make the principal and interest payments on the bonds. With those payments, the total cost for the project is closer to $33 million, but a number of factors — interest rates, number of sign-ups, project bids, etc. — could decrease that amount, according to City Operations Director Kyle Box.

More details…

The city would like to begin phase one in 2025 and the construction cost of phase one is estimated to be $9.2 million, which will be financed by general obligation bonds at an estimated 4% interest rate.

Moorhead explained that phase one is estimated to eventually generate $1.2 million in revenue for the city, which will be used to make the projected $770,000 principal and interest payments on the bond. Of the remaining revenue, $265,000 will go toward operating and maintaining the network, leaving an approximately $165,000 margin.

The first payment on the bonds will be deferred for three years in order to allow the city time to begin generating revenue, according to Box.

Moorhead went over best-case, worst-case and expected scenarios for how the take rate, or the percentage of Willmar residents who sign up for service, will affect revenue.

Friday (Feb 14), the newspaper reported…

Will the Willmar City Council again delay a decision on whether or not to construct a $24.5 million open-access broadband network throughout the city, or even scrap the plan altogether?

That is the question the council faces after Charter Communications on Feb. 7 submitted a letter to the city making an offer to install fiber-optic lines in the Willmar Industrial Park at no cost to the city — if the city holds off on its Connect Willmar Initiative .

The council will hear a report from city staff at its regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 18, regarding a meeting that took place Thursday between Charter representatives and city staff, Mayor Doug Reese and Councilor Justin Ask, according to City Operations Director Kyle Box. The meeting agenda was not yet posted early Friday afternoon, but Box confirmed the report will be presented.

The council meeting takes place at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the boardroom at the Kandiyohi County Health and Human Services building, 2200 23rd St. N.E. in Willmar. It is one day later than usual due to the Presidents Day holiday.

The West Central Tribune outlined the work done by the community and Hometown finder to date…

During the two years that the Connect Willmar Initiative has been in the research and planning stages, the city has invested about $675,000, countless human resource hours, as well as the time that volunteer broadband committee members have spent researching and helping to plan the network.

Initially, the city wanted construction of phase one to take place in 2024, but city staff recommended delaying the decision to begin construction to allow more research to be conducted to ensure it would be financially feasible and would not burden Willmar taxpayers.

They also spoke to Charter Communications…

The West Central Tribune asked Charter Communications Vice President of Public Relations Mike Hogan why Charter is making this offer to the city now, after two years of planning and research has already been completed for a city-owned network.

“We heard very clearly how important the industrial park is to the future growth and economic development of this community,” Hogan replied in an email. “That’s why we’re stepping up to make this a win-win for Willmar residents and business owners, as the solution we’re proposing provides access to gigabit speeds and the full suite of reliable services residents and businesses need.”

In April of 2024, Charter Communications Director of State Government Affairs David Larson was asked during a council work session if Charter would commit to installing fiber in the industrial park. Larson told the council that could be part of an “off-line conversation” and nothing more was said on the topic at that session.

There were earlier options too…

There was also an earlier opportunity in the fall of 2022 to submit a proposal to the city of Willmar to build out fiber in the industrial park, but Charter did not submit one.

Only three proposals were received, and the one from Hometown Fiber led to the Connect Willmar Initiative.