REGION — Expanding broadband in small rural communities is challenging – but also essential if we want our towns to thrive. The root of the challenge for expanding internet service in small towns is that they simply don’t have enough people, or potential subscribers, to be a priority for internet service providers (ISPs). To help solve this problem, the communities of Albany Township, Bethel, Gilead, Greenwood, Milton Plantation, Newry, and Woodstock have launched a new regional collaboration through the Mahoosuc Community Broadband Committee.
The new committee came together through the Maine West Broadband Boot Camp organized by Community Concepts Finance Corporation and the Northern Forest Center in 2020. Boot Camp participants from the Mahoosuc area surveyed residents and asked them to test their internet speeds. Survey results pointed to the increasing importance of broadband in allowing people to access work,
education, health, and many more services.
Additional survey and speed test results include:
61% of speed test participants are technically unserved 43% of residents are not at all or only somewhat satisfied with their internet speeds
92% and 91%, respectively, say it is very or extremely important to have fast, reliable internet service at their home and throughout the community.
Based on this information, the Committee and participating communities adopted a shared goal of ensuring that “everyone in the Mahoosuc area has access to universal, reliable, affordable, high-speed, future ready internet service.” With this goal as a grounding point, each of the towns plus the county contributed $2,500 to hire a contractor to produce a detailed map of broadband service across the area and a set of potential strategies to guide work to expand high-speed internet service. This funding was matched by the Betterment Fund and the Northern Forest Center, and the Committee selected Casco Bay Advisors (CBA) to conduct the work. CBA completed the work in August and the report is available online at http://www.mainewest.org/mahoosuc-broadband-committee.html. With historic levels of state and federal funding available to help expand broadband service in rural communities, the Mahoosuc Community Broadband Committee is now positioned to use the CBA report to guide the next steps, ensuring everyone in the Mahoosuc region has access to high speed, reliable, affordable internet service.
In the next broadband update, we will share some of the findings from the CBA report and the next steps the Committee and participating communities are taking. If you want to know more about the Mahoosuc Community Broadband Committee’s work and/or join the committee, please contact Mia Purcell (Woodstock), [email protected].
Mahoosuc Community Broadband Committee:
Art Marshall (Albany)
Steve Smith (Albany)
Michelle Conroy (Bethel Public Library)
Mike Muir (SAD44 IT)
Michele Varuolo Cole (Bethel)
Jeff Martin (Bethel)
Per Nygren (Bethel)
Deb Walther (Gilead)
Kim Sparks (Greenwood)
Mike Wilson (Greenwood)
Theresa Doherty (Greenwood)
Sarah Vedella (Milton Plantation)
Steve Wight (Newry)
Marcel Polak (Woodstock)
Vern Maxfield (Woodstock)