Dunn County CR&T authorizes Broadband Task Force
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
MENOMONIE — The Dunn County Community Resources and Tourism Committee has authorized the formation of a Broadband Task Force.
At the February meeting, the CR&T committee approved applying to the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin for a $16,000 planning grant to write a community-wide broadband plan for Internet access, said Kristin Korpela, Dunn County manager, at the CR&T committee’s March 14 meeting.
The grant from the PSC is a non-competitive grant, so Dunn County will receive the money, she said.
The broadband plan will identify gaps in service throughout the county, Korpela said.
The state will use Dunn County’s preliminary plan as part of Wisconsin’s five-year broadband plan that will be used to access federal money intended for broadband expansion, she said.
The federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, signed into law in 2021, provides $65 billion to connect all Americans to affordable and reliable high-speed broadband Internet.
Korpela said she had asked Dan Dunbar, Dunn County’s chief information officer, to lead the broadband task force.
There is a correlation between information technology and broadband service, and Dunbar also is very good at project management, she said.
Forming a work group/task force is allowed under the rules governing the county board and requires the approval of the Dunn County Board chair, and Korpela said Kelly McCullough, chair of the Dunn County Board, has given his approval for the task force.
The task force will include a member of the CR&T committee and representatives for K-12 education, the agricultural community, the Dunn County Economic Development Corporation, a rural municipality and other members that the CR&T committee believes are appropriate, Korpela said.
The state must submit the five-year plan to the federal government in August, so Dunn County must have the preliminary plan submitted to the state by mid-June, she said.
Larger employers, especially rural employers, should be added to the task force, said Jim Zons, county board supervisor from Colfax and chair of the CR&T committee.
Dunbar has said once the core committee is established, he will bring in other people to provide more focused information and perspective as needed, Korpela said.
Tom Quinn, county board supervisor from Downing and a member of the CR&T committee, said he really liked the idea of a task force to form a broadband expansion plan and said that the plan should include how to gain broadband Internet access for lower income citizens in Dunn County.
Part of the goal is for the infrastructure to be affordable and accessible to people in need, Korpela said.
According to information Korpela provided for the CR&T committee, the broadband plan will include goals for broadband deployment; values and priorities that will be used to recommend or approve broadband projects; define and recommend how broadband projects are identified and approved and by whom; evaluate the current broadband infrastructure in Dunn County to identify gaps through community education, surveys and public meetings; additional recommendations from the task force; and an appendix of identified potential projects.
The Broadband Task Force is expected to report to the CR&T committee monthly and to submit the broadband plan to the committee on June 6, for approval by the CR&T committee at the June 13 meeting.
The Dunn County Community Resources and Tourism Committee unanimously approved forming the Broadband Task Force.
The CR&T committee meets next on April 11.
