On June 24, 2009, the Northeast Service Cooperative board formally approved the development of both a grant and loan application to extend fiber and other broadband technologies to critical service and under/unserved areas in northeast Minnesota.

The project will entail interconnecting approximately 85 communities across the region with a fiber backbone and deploying other current technologies, such as VDLS2 and WiMax, to reach beyond the fiber path to under and unserved areas.

The project will be funded entirely using existing public sector funding and will provide opportunities for the private sector to further improve broadband connectivity.

The NESC successfully submitted a federal grant/loan proposal on August 20, 2009.

On March  23, 2010 the USDA published a news release  publicly announcing the award of funding for NESC's Northeast Middle Mile Fiber Project.

Review the menu items for further detail on the project including the scope, application, maps, an overview of service areas, and outline of project benefits.