Nearly $6.3 million awarded for internet project in Crawford County

By Ted Pennekamp

A rural broadband internet project in Crawford County is one of 71 internet expansion projects that have recently been awarded funding by the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) from the state’s Broadband Expansion Grant Program. 

The PSC awarded nearly $125 million for 71 projects that will expand broadband internet to more than 82,912 residential and 4,566 business locations currently unserved or underserved. The projects receiving awards will impact 45 counties. The grant awards will leverage $185,780,074 of matching funds from recipients.

The Crawford County project will utilize a fiber to the premise service to reach 25 businesses and 695 residential locations in the townships of Marietta, Wauzeka and Eastman and the villages of Steuben and Wauzeka. 

The the grant award for the project is $6,266,250 with matching funds of $2,088,750. The total cost of the project is $8,355,000. The Richland-Grant Telephone Cooperative is conducting the project, which is known as Crawford County Phase 2.

The grant application proposal stated that Crawford County is expected to allocate $350,000 in matching funds. The county has received a total of $3,133,258 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, and has already approved of giving $350,000 for another broadband project that had earlier been approved by the PSC. 

The project will cover 60 square miles of Crawford County. The ordering of equipment and staking for the project is anticipated to be underway in June and July. Cable is expected to be buried and the main line installed from August of 2022 through August of 2023. In May of 2023 through February of 2024, electronics at customer locations are expected to be installed. Service is expected to be turned on from June of 2023 through February of 2024.

Wisconsin has disbursed or committed more than $289 million toward expanding broadband since 2019, including $105 million in federal funding directed by Governor Tony Evers. State and federal funds allocated under the governor for broadband grants have provided or will provide more than 387,000 homes and businesses access to new or improved services.

In November 2021, Evers and PSC Chairperson Rebecca Cameron Valcq, announced $100 million of broadband expansion grant funding from the 2021-23 state biennial budget would be available to be awarded by the PSC. In March of 2022, the PSC received 194 applications requesting a total of $495 million. Due to the large demand for funding, on June 2, 2022, the governor and the PSC announced an additional $25 million from the state budget would be made available for the current grant round.

Previously approved

Three projects for Crawford County were previously approved by the PSC.

Clayton, Scott, Haney

The Richland-Grant Telephone Cooperative is conducting a project that will have fiber-to-the-premises service for one business and 393 residences in the towns of Clayton, Scott, and Haney. The project got a grant of $2,364,000 and needed $3,303,237 million in matching funds. The project cost is estimated at  $5,667,237. The town of Scott and the town of Clayton have each pledged $20,000 toward the project. The La Valle Telephone Cooperative has pledged $3,263,237.

The timeline called for electronics to be installed at customer locations through August of 2023.

Vernon 

Communications

Another project moving forward is a Vernon Communications Cooperative project that will utilize a fiber-to-the-premises service to 52 businesses and 993 residences in the towns of Freeman, Utica, and Seneca, the villages of Mount Sterling and Lynxville, and the communities of Seneca and Rising Sun.

The project received a grant for $5,697,500 and had matching funds of $1,077,500. The project has an estimated cost of $6,775,000. The Seneca School District pledged $50,000 towards the project in matching funds. Vernon Communications will provide $677,500, and Crawford County has approved of $350,000. The county will be reimbursed for these funds immediately upon reimbursement by the Broadband Expansion Grant.

According to the application, 76 percent of  the property in the Seneca School District will be served by this project.

From August of 2022 through October of 2023, Vernon Communications is scheduled to begin subscriber installations and turn up service.

Ferryville

Vernon Communications also undertook a project in the Eagle Mountain Subdivision that is part of the village of Ferryville. The PSC awarded a grant for $172,900 for the project, which will involve fiber-to-the-home for all sites in the Eagle Mountain Subdivision. The grant involves a $179,950 match.

The project will build service past eight businesses and 130 residences.

Broadband 

coming to fruition

Getting broadband, high-speed internet service to the unserved and underserved areas of Crawford County has been a concern for many years for residents and businesses. Now, however, several broadband projects are coming to fruition.