County co-investment in a broadband grant application process was central to Tuesday’s commissioners meeting. KwiKom Communications of Iola is currently seeking the county’s assistance in a $2 million broadband project that will bring internet to the area between Iola and Humboldt, as well as near the airport.
“It’s a $1 million Kansas Broadband Acceleration grant, but a $2 million project,” noted John Terry, KwiKom Director of Government Affairs and Business. “The state will be putting $1 million towards this project and KwiKom will be investing $1 million.” Terry clarified that any county contribution will offset Kwikom’s share of the project.
Initiated in 2020, the Kansas Broadband Acceleration Grant Program aims to allocate $85 million over a decade to narrow the digital divide within the state. The program plays a crucial role in Kansas’ strategy to eliminate statewide broadband gaps. It focuses on directing funds to regions that are unlikely to have access to broadband service without financial support from the state or federal government.
There are approximately 150 service points included in KwiKom’s proposed project. One of the components of the grant is community co-investment. “I’m here to have that conversation and find out if the county can co-invest,” said Terry.
At the estimated total project cost of $2 million, each service point would be $13,300.
“Obviously, without grant funding, that’s not an attractive build,” added Terry.
Terry presented the commissioners with letters from other counties that successfully co-invested with KwiKom on similar projects. “The state requires co-investment for these projects — community buy-in, so to speak,” said Terry. “We’re not here to necessarily ask the commission for any kind of dollar amount. A co-investment is a co-investment. Whether the commission decides to be like Montgomery County and do $70,000 or like Osage County and do $10,000.”
Terry added that the proposed project area is currently considered unserved or underserved, meaning that nobody in that area has access to what is defined as broadband speeds. This answered Commissioner Bruce Symes’ question of whether other internet providers are already operating or serving in that area. “There is no fiber optic internet available in that area,” Terry said. “With a cost of $13,000 per service point, there’s not exactly a huge fight going on among providers to get out there and build the fiber.”
The grant will only be used in Allen County, Terry said, and the application deadline is March 11. “We’re not looking for an answer today,” he said. “We just want to get the conversation started.” The commission requested Terry return on Feb. 13 for further discussion and follow-up.
IN OTHER NEWS, the commission heard or considered the following:
• Road and Bridge Director Mark Griffith presented the commission with pricing of two new chip spreader options. The more expensive option — a $410,000 Entyre model (2024) from G.W. Van Keppel Company — includes four-wheel drive and a spread hopper that can adjust up to 22 feet. Griffith noted these were the only things that set it apart from the cheaper option — a $380,360 Roscoe model (2024) from LeeBoy.
Griffith added that the county doesn’t have enough need for four-wheel drive to justify spending the extra money. “The Roscoe model is also more advantageous since it has an extra year of warranty,” he added. The money to pay for the spreader will come out of the special equipment fund. The previous chip spreader was a 1993 model. Griffith hopes to get the same kind of longevity out of the new model and stressed, “We can’t maintain the roads without one. It is very important to have one.”
• County commissioners rubber-stamped the Jan. 1 merger between St. Luke’s health system and BJC health system per the request of Allen County Regional Hospital Administrator Jeremy Armstrong.
Armstrong noted that there haven’t been any changes at the hospital since the merger and it’s “business as usual.”
Armstrong said he believed the merger is a positive step for the local hospital. “This is an integration of two very large healthcare systems and will give much greater negotiating power for supplies and services.”
