Arvig to Invest Border-to-Border Grant into Redwood County Fiber Network
Arvig will invest a recently awarded Border to Border Broadband program grant into a fiber-to-the-home project that will expand high-speed internet access in eight cities in Redwood County.
The mainline and last-mile fiber network will reach 1,855 underserved and 15 unserved structures in the cities of Belview, Clements, Morgan, Seaforth, Vesta, Wabasso, Walnut Grove and Wanda, representing about 30 percent of Redwood County residents.
When complete, the network will provide residents with internet speeds from 100Mbps (20 Mbps upload) up to 10 Gbps (1 Gbps upload), meeting and exceeding Minnesota’s 2026 state speed goal.
“This just shows what strong local support for broadband access can do for communities in our state,” said Mark Birkholz, Director of Customer Operations and Southern Markets at Arvig. “Residents in Redwood County will have access to some of the highest quality internet services available, enabling them to enjoy a great online experience and, importantly, keep pace with our connected world.”
The total project cost for the network is estimated at $4.4 million. Arvig will invest its $1.3 million Border to Border grant, in addition to $1.2 million in capital funds for the project, and Redwood County will contribute a local match of more than $1.9 million.
Construction on the network will begin as soon as the grant is awarded and all are slated for completion before June of 2025.
The Border-to-Border Broadband program is administered by the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)’s Office of Broadband Development. Arvig has participated in the program since its inception in 2014.
In total, 61 broadband expansion projects around Minnesota will receive a share of $99.6 million in grants from the Border-to-Border Broadband program, representing the largest single investment in broadband in the state’s history, according to the governor’s office.
A full list of grant awards by project is available on DEED’s website.
About Arvig
Headquartered in Perham, Minnesota, Arvig is a local, employee-owned broadband and full-service telecommunications provider. Committed to delivering cutting-edge technology to customers throughout the region, Arvig provides residential internet, television, and telephone services. Additionally, Arvig provides a wide variety of business technology solutions. Visit arvig.com for additional information.