Otter Tail County
| Year | Rank | 100/20 Mbps |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | #56 of 87 | 77.72% |
| 2022 | #68 of 87 | 70.54% |
| 2021 | #67 of 87 | 67.02% |
| 2020 | #65 of 87 | 65.55% |
| 2019 | #82 of 87 | 35.34% |
| 2018 | #87 of 87 | 2.36% |
| 2017 | #84 of 87 | 1.75% |
Otter Tail County: Recent Progress But Needs More
Otter Tail County ranks 56 (up 8 points) for broadband access out of 87 counties. They have 77.72 percent coverage to broadband of 100 Mbps down and 20 up. They have 7564 households without access to broadband at that speed. Estimates indicate that it will cost $70.3 million to get to ubiquitous broadband in the county.
They have seen slow. incremental improvement since 2020 but have seen a nice bump up in the last year. In December 2022, East Otter Tail Telephone was awarded $1.1 million in Border to Border grant to reach 171 unserved and 100 underserved households, farms and businesses in the southeastern portion of Otter Tail County near the rural parts of Battle Lake, Henning, Parkers Prairie and Urbank and Otter Tail Telephone received $3.4 million to serve a total of 1,186 locations comprised of 495 unserved households; 334 underserved households; 245 unserved businesses, farms, and community anchor institutions; and 112 underserved businesses, farms, and community anchor institutions in the North Fergus Falls area. In 2023, Otter Tail Telecom received another $2.3 million to serve a total of 506 households, businesses, farms, and community anchor institutions in the South Battle Lake.
Otter Tail County residents were awarded 21 line extension funding requests, which means state funding will subsidize last mile broadband extension to their homes.
With all of recent activity, Otter Tail has shifted from red to yellow ranking.
Household Density
15.2
Number of Providers
17
As of 2023 · Source: MN DEED
Households with Device Access
statewide
statewide
statewide
statewide
statewide
Has Worked with Blandin Foundation
Yes
Has Received MN Grant(s)
Yes
2023 – Otter Tail Telcom – South Battle Lake – GRANT $2,331,792
2022 – East Otter Tail Telephone Co. dba Arvig, $1,140,704.90
2022 – Otter Tail Telcom, LLC, $3,381,661.00 (Learn more)
2019 – Otter Tail Telcom LLC – Long and Fish Lakes Project – GRANT $156,954
2019 – Arvig (Loretel Systems, Inc.) – Cormorant Lakes Area Project – GRANT $430,780
2017 – Arvig – Pelican Rapids rural non-ACAM – GRANT $633,642
2017 – Otter Tail Telcom LLC – Red Oak Drive – GRANT $173,683
2017 – WCTA (West Central Telephone Association) – Wadena Rural Phase III – GRANT $874,581
2016 – OTTER TAIL TELCOM BATTLE LAKE – GRANT: $ 238,170
2016 – OTTER TAIL TELCOM FERGUS FALLS AREA – GRANT: $ 279,271
2016 – WCTA WADENA RURAL NORTH — GRANT: $718,850
2015 – Otter Tail Telcom Fergus Falls 864 – Hwy 59 – Grant award: $295,432
2015 – Otter Tail Telcom Hwy 59/94 PRT to POM – Grant award: $164,207
2014 – Otter Tail Telcom, Stuart Lake – Award: $105,364.
2014 – Otter Tail Telcom, 245th – Award: $108,553.