Board approves $1,000 contribution and letter supporting East Central Energy BEED broadband grant

Dennis Rice, broadband manager for East Central Energy (ECE), asked the Pine County Board of Commissioners for a letter of support and a financial contribution of up to $1,000 toward ECE’s BEED (Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment) grant application. Rice said ECE plans to use the same high-quality fiber-to-the-home design used in prior border-to-border builds to cover roughly 2,631 eligible locations remaining in Pine County.

Rice told the board that BEED eligibility is determined by FCC-derived mapping that categorizes addresses as underserved if reported speeds fall below 100/20 Mbps. He said ECE plans to submit the application on or about April 19 and that a letter of support from the county would score points on the application, with a small financial contribution improving competitive ranking.

After brief discussion about the county’s prior support for broadband and the importance of high-quality home connections for health care, education and commerce, a commissioner moved and another seconded a motion to approve a letter of support and a $1,000 county contribution toward ECE’s BEED application. Commissioners voted in favor; the motion passed by voice vote.

Rice emphasized ECE’s construction approach would be “a true fiber to the home connection” and that the cooperative’s goal is to fill the remaining “Swiss-cheese” gaps in county coverage. County staff noted a separate letter-request from a different provider, Mediacom, had been received and that staff would meet with that company to determine whether a future request for support was appropriate.

Ending: The board approved the letter of support and the $1,000 contribution. Staff will provide a copy of the letter for the record and follow up if additional provider requests come in.