Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By RICHARD JENKINS
Broadband advocates in Iron County are encouraging residents to fill out a survey from the Wisconsin State Broadband Office designed to determine where areas of need are in the state.
“If the people that fill out the survey show a need (for better service), which I believe that’s what it’s going to show, then we’re thinking the Public Service Commission is going to look at Iron County as one of the counties that indicates there is a (desire) ... possibly affecting future funding for future grants,” said Norm McKindles, the chair of the local broadband committee. “We see it as all-important, not only now, but also in the future.”
Residents can take the survey at research.net/r/consumer_broadband, while business people can take the survey at research.net/r/wi_broadband.
“It’s really short, it doesn’t take long to fill it out,” McKindles said.
The survey remains open through Dec. 31.
According to state officials, approximately 11,000 resident and 700 business survey responses have been filled out.
This high turnout led officials to keep the survey open longer, extending it until the end of the year, according to an email from a commission representative.
According to a map of the responses, Iron County has one of the lowest response rates in the state.
The county has received $121,105 in broadband grants from the public service commission over the last two grant cycles — funding a project to expand access in the Saxon, Upson and the Gile Flowage areas in 2015 and a project to expand access in the Pine Lake, Mercer and Sherman areas this year.
Broadband advocates say despite these improvements, there is still a need for increased service.
At a November ceremony to recognize this year’s grant, Iron County Development Zone Coordinator Kelly Klein said well over 300 of the 800 respondents to a previous Iron County broadband survey said they’d be willing to telecommute from Iron County if the technology could meet their needs. He said another 160 people said they’d consider starting a business of some sort if the technology was sufficient.
For more information about the state survey, visit psi.wi.gov/broadbandsurvey.htm
