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NextLink asks Lincoln County for letter of support for Nebraska BEAD; commissioners raise coverage questions for Wallace
Summary
NextLink presented planned hybrid fiber/wireless build areas and requested a county letter of support for the Nebraska BEAD application; commissioners questioned why Wallace does not appear in the defined project area and discussed use of a NACO support‑letter template.
NextLink Internet presented a broadband build plan to the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners on April 14 and requested the county’s support for a Nebraska BEAD application.
Ebony Cooksey, market development manager and government affairs coordinator for NextLink, displayed pending coverage maps and described the company’s hybrid approach (fiber plus wireless towers) already under way across Lincoln County and other parts of Nebraska. She said NextLink has pending coverage areas that the company expects to serve “within the next quarter” and noted the firm’s ongoing RDOF and other federal obligations.
Commissioners asked detailed questions about the company’s planned technology mix for Lincoln County. Cooksey said the county project would be “hybrid technology” and that she would follow up with GIS and engineering staff to provide a percentage split of wireless versus fiber coverage. She noted NextLink has office locations in Hastings, Scottsbluff, Lincoln and Pickrell and that some deliverable sites are designated by FCC/Connect Nebraska maps.
Commissioner members raised a specific concern about Wallace, a village in Lincoln County. Cooksey and commissioners reviewed the Connect Nebraska project map and concluded Wallace does not appear inside the current defined project areas for the Nebraska BEAD layer; Cooksey said she would check with state BEAD staff and NextLink engineers about whether Wallace can be added or served from nearby infrastructure. She discussed a “tower host” program that can incentivize landowners to host wireless towers and said some of NextLink’s pending RDOF census blocks are within roughly 10–15 miles of Wallace.
County staff indicated they are reviewing letters of support: the board’s development stakeholder group has recommended use of a standard letter template from the Nebraska Association of County Officials (NACO). The board said it would review the NACO template and compare it with the company’s draft before deciding which letter to provide; Tyler Volkmar, deputy county attorney, will review the final language before signature.
Cooksey encouraged counties to support multiple providers for consumer choice and asked commissioners to consider local needs when selecting language. The board directed staff to follow up on Wallace coverage and to circulate the NACO template for review; no formal vote was taken.
