Polk County

Table of goal data by year

Year	Rank	100/20 Mbps
2021	#20 of 87	91.72%
2020	#17 of 87	91.76%
2019	#20 of 87	88.35%
2018	#16 of 87	85.39%
2017	#19 of 87	80.89%

Coverage Map

Rank: 17 (out of 87) for access to 100/20 megabits per second (Mbps)

Polk County has better than 90 percent broadband coverage and they part of three State broadband grants to get better broadband:

Polk County will benefit from a few MN State Grants awarded in 2021:

Garden Valley Technologies – Northwest Thief River Falls and Euclid – GRANT $1,640,722 This middle and last mile project will serve 104 unserved and 22 underserved locations in portions of Marshall and Polk counties.

Halstad Telephone Company – North Fisher Expansion – GRANT $619,000 This last mile project will upgrade approximately 57 unserved and seven underserved locations in portions of Huntsville, Nesbit and Fanny townships in Polk County.

Wikstrom Telephone Co. Inc. – Wiktel NW MN Broadband 2020 – GRANT $490,997 The last mile project will serve 153 unserved locations in sparsely populated areas in Kittson, Marshall and Polk counties.

Projected allocation of American Recovery Project ARP funds in Polk is $6,082,855; broadband is one possible use.

Polk County has the opportunity to invest in broadband with federal funding. That, and the three recent grant awards, would help them reach ubiquitous broadband. They are code green.

Past grants:

2016 – HALSTAD TELEPHONE COMPANY KERTSONVILLE AREA – GRANT: $296,665

2015 – Halstad Telephone Company – Gentilly Township – Grant award: $424,460

2014 – Halstad Telephone Co., Halstad Tract MN 11902500 FTTH Amount $1.65 million

2019: Halstad Telephone Company – Rural East Grand Forks Expansion Project – GRANT $440,000

Find more articles on broadband in Polk County (http://tinyurl.com/zk8apgm)