St. Croix County broadband study recommending “middle mile network”

By LeAnn R. Ralph

HUDSON  —  A broadband study commissioned by St. Croix County recommends that the county be involved to at least some degree in developing a “middle mile network” for providing high-speed Internet access to all of St. Croix County.

Jack Maytum, senior business analyst for Design Nine Broadband Planners, presented information from the study at the St. Croix County Board’s December 8 meeting.

Maytum said he had held 25 meetings with stakeholders in St. Croix County, had held two public meetings and had conducted a survey of residents and businesses.

The study also collected 50 pages of narratives from St. Croix County residents about their existing Internet access, he said.

In addition, the broadband study contains an asset analysis of existing broadband in the county so that effort is not duplicated and to identify where there are gaps in broadband service, Maytum said.

The Design Nine maps show that the best Internet access in St. Croix County is in and around Hudson and that people living in and around Hudson tend to be the most satisfied with their current Internet access.

The study also analyzed connectivity solutions, such as wireless and satellite, and includes preliminary design and cost estimates, a wireless propagation study to show where new towers could be located for maximum coverage,  and information about grant opportunities, Maytum said.

“There is a tsunami of funding that currently (is in process) that’s a combination of CARES, ARPA, and the infrastructure plan that will start in the later part of 2022 that was recently passed in November,” he said.

CARES is the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act, and ARPA is the American Rescue Plan Act.

The study makes recommendations on how to secure funding and how to handle the overall financial liability for a broadband network, Maytum said.

Responses

Of those who responded to the survey, 88 percent are interested in access to gigabit fiber Internet (1,000 megabits), Maytum said.

Of those who responded to the survey, 94 percent believe local government should help facilitate better Internet access, he said.

Among residents who took the survey, 40 percent report the quality of Internet service is affecting where they choose to live, Maytum said, noting that the number of people who say the quality of Internet service is affecting where they choose to live has increased over the past several years, and has especially increased during the COVID-19 pandemic because people are working from home, are going to school from home and want to use services such as tele-medicine.

Among business respondents, 88 percent indicated the Internet is important to the success of their business, he said.

For the businesses that responded, 73 percent reported they need employees to be able to work from home either part-time or full-time, Maytum said.

Broadband strategy

Maytum said he is recommending that St. Croix County develop a county-wide broadband strategy.

County government should not be an Internet service provider, but the county should be involved in some way to work with Internet service providers to make maximum use of the funding available from the federal and state level, he said.

St. Croix County should make certain investments, such as installing conduit under a road in conjunction with road work, which would be a long-term process, Maytum said.

The county could lease out the conduit or allow ISPs to use it for a minimal cost, he said.

The county also should be working with existing Internet providers to establish or improve partnerships, Maytum said.

ARPA and the new infrastructure bill has a lot of money earmarked for broadband Internet access, he said.

In the past, not very much grant money was available for counties in rural areas, Maytum said.

“We’ve made a sea change in the availability of funding,” he said.

At a meeting in May with county officials and town officials, “they were standing there like kids who just got their allowance,” Maytum said, because they had just found out how much money they were getting in ARPA funds, which can, in general, be spent on sewer, water or broadband.

Most rural townships do not have sewer or water utilities, so that leaves broadband, he noted.

“The problem will be how to spend the money effectively — not how to get the money,” Maytum said.

“We have COVID to thank for that, and we may as well take whatever benefit we can get from it,” he said.

Expectations

It will be important for St. Croix County to manage the expectations of county residents, Maytum said.

Residents must realize that improving broadband Internet service is a long-term plan that will take five to 10 years to substantially improve broadband in the county, he said.

Putting up towers now takes about a year, but a few years ago, the materials could be obtained in a few weeks, Maytum said.

Because of the increased interest in improved Internet service and the supply chain problems, planning is important, he said.

There are 34,000 households and 3,200 businesses in St. Croix County, Maytum said.

“We think eventually everyone in the country will have fiber (Internet) the way everyone now has electricity,” he said.

Middle mile network

Design Nine is recommending a middle mile fiber network that will allow Internet service providers to provide more Internet service, Maytum said.

Wisconsin has a robust middle mile network called the WIN network, but none of the ISPs in St. Croix County have access to the WIN network, he said.

A middle mile network has been designed to connect those who have poor Internet connectivity now. The middle mile network would cover 109 miles and would cost $11.9 million, Maytum said.

According to the map, the middle mile network would cover all of St. Croix County except for the area around Hudson where connectivity is already good.

For less than $15 million, St. Croix County would have a world-class middle mile network that Internet service providers could attach to, Maytum said.

Carah Koch, county board supervisor from Hudson, asked if the $1l.9 million cost would be less if the county put conduits under roads during road construction.

Putting conduit under roads would significantly reduce the cost, Maytum said.

Internet service providers are looking to government to help supplement the cost of installing broadband, but since there has been “a tidal shift” in the funding available, the problem will not be looking for funds, but rather, managing funds, he said.

Billions

ARPA has money for broadband, and the infrastructure bill just signed into law contains $65 billion for broadband, Maytum said.

In 2008, after the Great Recession, there was $780 million earmarked to build middle mile networks, he noted.

Wisconsin has had a broadband commission for five years, and St. Croix County and the state should be well positioned to take advantage of funding opportunities, Maytum said.

As Brown County has done, St. Croix County may want to consider setting up a broadband office, or a commission, or establishing a committee to explore public and private partnerships with the county and the Internet service providers, he said.

David Peterson, chair of the St. Croix County Board, noted that a neighboring county is planning to put fiber optics on power poles and asked if that would be an option for St. Croix County.

Putting fiber on power poles is an option, Maytum said.

But improvements in boring techniques have improved the ability to do horizontal boring, he said, adding, “we have fracking to thank for that.”

Some of the issues with putting fiber optics on power poles include who owns the poles, who is going to move the wires to make room for the fiber optic cable, and which poles would need to be replaced first, Maytum said.

Putting fiber optics on power poles in St. Croix County would have to analyzed to find out if using that method would be cost effective, he said.

Businesses

One St. Croix County Board member wanted to know if businesses that have employees who work from home would be willing to invest in the middle mile network since those businesses would benefit.

Local Internet service providers have already figured that out and charge connectivity fees, Maytum said.

Presumably people who work from home using the Internet already have Internet access, but according to some of the comments included with the broadband study, the Internet access is often barely adequate to do the work, or the access is good enough to allow the employee to work but not good enough to allow anyone else in the family to use the Internet at the same time.

Follow-through

Daniel Hansen, county board supervisor from New Richmond, asked if the county is involved in some way with the infrastructure, are there any assurances that ISPs will use the middle mile network to connect with households in the county?

Will the providers follow through or “are we just hoping?” he asked.

This is why Design Nine is recommending that St. Croix County have “skin in the game,” Maytum said.

If the county is involved in some way in developing the middle mile network, then St. Croix County can place conditions on the investment. If the county owns the conduit and/or the fiber, then the county will have more leverage, he said.

The county should establish an entity to own the conduit and the middle mile network. By maintaining at least some of the ownership, the county will have control of the assets, Maytum said.

At one point in the discussion, Maytum had said current services that provide broadband Internet access and television service cost about $160 per month.

Several St. Croix County Board members said their constituents either could not afford that amount or would not be likely to pay that amount.

Koch noted that having the middle mile network as an open access network for ISPs to use would provide an opportunity to increase competition and reduce the cost for St. Croix County residents.

The value of the broadband study is that the vast majority of those who responded to the survey want St. Croix County to “do something,” she said.

Koch said she would like to see the study put to use and not put on a shelf.

St. Croix County needs a broadband strategy, she said, adding “this is a once in a lifetime opportunity with the federal funding available.”

Next steps

Koch said she would ask that a broadband strategy be on the agenda for the St. Croix County Board to consider.

County officials have had the broadband study report for a while, and at the next administrative committee meeting, the committee will recommend action, said Ken Witt, county administrator.

At the January meeting, the St. Croix County Board can vote on something to start taking steps, he said.

“We are going to move fast on it,” Witt said.

Cathy Leaf, county board supervisor from Hudson, pointed out that a middle mile network also would provide opportunities for more businesses to come and grow in St. Croix County.

Leaf wondered if the grants that are available are the kind where the county pays up front and then is reimbursed later.

St. Croix County already has ARPA money in the bank, Witt said.

All of the municipalities receiving ARPA money obtained half of it this year and will receive the other half next year.

St. Croix County will be receiving about $18 million all together in ARPA funds.

Each of the townships, villages and cities in St. Croix County also will receive their own ARPA funds that are in addition to the money the county receives.

Grant applications submitted by ISPs to the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin that have a commitment of ARPA funds from the municipality where the Internet service would be installed often score well for the grant.