Expanding broadband access in St. Joseph County

 

NORTH LIBERTY, Ind.-- Homeowner Chris Fleck has been in his North Liberty home for about five years.  ABC57 asked him what the internet is like in his corner of the county. 

"When we first moved in, there was no high-speed internet," he said. "We were capped out with DSL service. Sometimes, we were better off tethering off our phones." 

But then add a global pandemic to the mix.

"We'd get a lot of spinning circles on our devices," he said. "A lot of frustration. A lot clamoring about, 'somebody needs to get off a device because dad has to work.'"

He decided Starlink satellite internet was worth the $120 a month it cost when it became available a couple years ago. Until finally, his subdivision got broadband.

"About three months ago, fiber lines were run through our subdivision finally, and most of us through here have been waiting for that opportunity for which to take advantage, and we did," Fleck said.

He said the fiber line is much faster and cheaper.

Not having broadband is a major complaint in the southwest corner of the county, areas like North Liberty, Walkerton, and Lakeville, according to Commissioner Tony Hazen.

"I've been here since February, I've been down there quite a bit, that's the number one complaint: they have zero broadband, or no internet, or unreliable internet," Hazen said.

Friday, the Redevelopment Commission approved $3 million to start laying down conduit to eventually install broadband internet that extends to these areas of need.

That funding is coming from Honeysuckle Solar Farm out by New Carlisle. Their required fee back to the county was meant for future economic development, and the commission determined this was the best use of those dollars. 

It won't cover the full cost, but it will get things started. The first phase will involve laying about 2.3 miles of "conduit" from the Town of North Liberty to Potato Creek State Park.

Executive Director of Economic Development, Bill Schalliol, said they will work in the coming months to secure the rest of the funding to finish the project. 

"We know that people in the southwest don't have the technology they need to do remote work, remote school, and even technology to bring in investment into the county," he said. "As we look at some of the investment being made around the county, without this technology, we just can't service the southwest side of the county like we're servicing other parts of the county."

It's no secret that broadband is crucial to the county's growing economic development, with investments flooding the region, but not enough housing to go around. 

"North Liberty is going to be an ever-growing community, not only because of the projects going on in New Carlisle, but also with the development of the inn at Potato Creek," Fleck said. "There's going to be a ton of traffic coming into the area." 

It will be at least a year before those families have better internet, but Commissioner Hazen is happy the work is getting started in his district.

Hazen is a Republican, appointed to the district three commission seat after the retirement of Debra Fleming, the only Democrat on the County Commission, turning it all red. 

Now, Hazen is hoping to keep his seat up for election this Tuesday.