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Sawyer County board authorizes $10 million broadband and radio network partnership
Summary
After closed‑door negotiations, the Sawyer County Board voted to pursue a reduced $10 million partnership with a private vendor to build towers, fiber and fixed‑wireless links aimed at improving the county's public‑safety radio coverage and broadband access; supervisors stressed tradeoffs over redundancy, cost and tribal coordination.
The Sawyer County Board voted to pursue a $10 million option with a private vendor to build a combination of towers, fiber and fixed‑wireless equipment intended to improve public‑safety radio coverage and countywide broadband and cellular service.
The motion — made in open session after a closed‑door negotiation under Wis. Stat. 19.85(1)(e) — authorized county staff to continue negotiating a partnership that would expand tower sites, deploy fiber to key nodes and add fixed‑wireless service for rural areas. A county administrator explained the pacing and financing that would be required if the board proceeds to execute the deal.
Vendor representatives described two options during a public presentation: a full $16 million plan that includes redundant fiber routes, and a smaller $10 million plan that trims fiber mileage and removes redundancy to lower up‑front cost. The vendor said the smaller plan ‘‘would reduce the total project cost to about $10 million’’ while acknowledging it would compromise the network's redundancy in places.
Officials framed the proposal as a public‑safety priority. The sheriff told the board that gaps in cellular and radio coverage affect officers’ ability to use mobile data computers and complicate emergency response in remote parts of the county. County staff and law‑enforcement leaders said the project is primarily intended to address those communications gaps.
Several supervisors raised concerns. Some said they worried about placing too much borrowing risk on taxpayers and asked what would happen if tribal lands could not be crossed by proposed fiber routes; vendor staff said alternative routings and design adjustments were feasible but would affect cost and coverage. The administrator said the county would require more firm commitments as contract details are negotiated.
The board put the question to a roll‑call vote after the closed session and approved pursuing the $10 million option. Supervisors said additional approvals will be required before any bond or financing is issued, and the county will return to the board with final contract terms and specifics about tower locations and vendor obligations.
Votes at a glance: the meeting also approved several routine items, including a zoning rezone request (Rezone 24‑11), an airport hanger lease renewal and a resolution updating medical‑examiner fees; those items were approved as noted on the record.
What happens next: staff will continue contract negotiations and return to the board with final financing terms, any agreements on tribal routing and details about how county emergency equipment will be hosted on the new towers.
