RENO COUNTY — A Reno County project is one of those across the state seeking grant funding through the state’s Broadband Acceleration Grant Program.
The proposed project from Buhler based Ideatek will bring fiber optic broadband infrastructure to 285 premises across seven separate areas of Reno County that lack reliable service levels, bringing each premise the capacity for a symmetrical 1Gbps service level.
Proposed service areas:
- Medora community. This includes 93 premises in the unincorporated city of Medora in northern Reno County and a five miles stretch outside of the city. Businesses include a church and food market.
- Pretty Prairie area. One farmstead outside of the city of Pretty Prairie that has struggled for years to obtain adequate service. Speed tests show speeds of 1.8 Mbps.
- 95th and Tobacco Road - Area north of Hutchinson that covers 69 premises, including a nudist colony business.
- 56th and Old K-61 - Area north of Hutchinson that covers 16 premises.
- 56th and Lorraine - Area north of Hutchinson that covers 24 premises.
- 4th and Greenacres Dr. - Area east of Hutchinson that covers 40 premises.
- 4th and Willison - Area east of Hutchinson that covers 42 premises.
Ideatek will build fiber to bring service levels up from speeds as low as .68Mbps to 1Gbps symmetrical. The infrastructure will be scalable for even greater speeds as bandwidth needs grow.
There are 36 projects that are competing for $5 million in available grant funding.
The program funds 50% of the total project amount, with a 50% match that results in $10 million in total investment in broadband infrastructure projects targeted for completion by October 2023.
The public comment window for the Broadband Acceleration Grant is open now through March 8, 2022 (11:59 p.m. CST). Grant applicants will have a subsequent opportunity to respond to public comments received in mid-March.