Midco is expanding the reach of its broadband services to areas of Minnesota that are unserved or underserved, with financial assistance from the state. Midco has been awarded a grant through the Border-to-Border Broadband Development Grant Program, allowing the company to expand services in Scandia in eastern Minnesota and Renville in the western part of the state.
Midco was awarded $510,358 to extend its current services to 219 households in five different parts of Scandia. The City of Scandia supplemented the grant with $160,085. Midco expects to begin the network extension work this summer.
In Renville, Midco was awarded $230,835 to bring broadband services to 644 unserved homes and 33 unserved businesses, farms and community institutions. The company currently provides cable TV services throughout the community. Construction of the broadband network is slated to begin this summer.
"Reliable access to broadband is essential, and some underserved people in Scandia have been clamoring for it. This grant moves us closer to closing digital divide in this community," said Midco Senior Director of Government Relations Justin Forde. "It was a highly competitive process, and we're grateful to the state of Minnesota for supporting our vision of providing excellent services to underserved areas of the state."
The broadband network extensions are intended to improve access to e-learning applications and health care resources, enable telecommuting options for residents and make businesses and city institutions more efficient. Midco's broadband connection is designed to exceed Minnesota's 2026 speed goal.