Fiber internet plan proposed

Bill Eckles, the CEO of Bevcomm, Inc. visited the Board of County Commissioners during their September 5 meeting to describe his company’s plans for a future fiber optics project aimed at unserved or underserved wireless internet customers in Waseca County.

Eckles said that, if Bevcomm wins this grant, it plans to extend beyond its existing hub in Wells, serving from south of Waldorf up to the St. Mary and Wilton township area while remaining west of Highway 13. The project as currently proposed will serve 520 homes. Estimated cost of the construction is $6 million; $4.5 million would come from grant money, $675,000 would come from Waseca County, and Bevcomm is committing to pay $825,000 plus any overruns. The project, if the grant is awarded, could begin construction in the spring of 2024 with internet service to households and businesses beginning in 2025.

During the initial construction of the fiber network, home and business owners in the area will be asked for permission to extend the fiber onto their property – a necessary step to provide them with service. There will be no cost to property owners who give permission, according to Eckles, during this initial phase. Any property owners who withhold permission will not be able to use the service; any who change their minds and allow it later will be imposed with a fee. 

Eckles also promises that Bevcomm will manage and pay for any repairs to damage caused by construction – such as in the event construction collides with a tile system – for seven years after construction is complete.

This is not the first time Eckles has approached the board with such a proposal. Bevcomm did not win the competitive grant from the state when the company last applied. For that grant application, Bevcomm combined its Waseca County project with one in Faribault County. The Faribault side of the project was receiving money from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and Eckles believes that is the reason Bevcomm was passed over for the grant. In the combined proposal, Bevcomm intended to extend service to 200 homes in Waseca County with a cost of $2.3 million and 800 in Faribault County with a cost of about $7.7 million. New Richland was included in the original plan for Waseca County, but is excluded from the current plan due to changes in network design. Staying west of Highway 13 also means not overlapping with a fiber cable running along the roadway, which the FCC considers coverage for that area and could damage the grant application.

The next round of grant applications opens in October, and winners will be chosen by February of 2024.