Wireless internet may come to Marquette County

By Kathleen McGwin
For those who have time go walk the dog while your computer downloads photos or programs, there might be some light at the end of the tunnel. Granite Broadband, a wireless and fiber internet connectivity company based in Ripon, presented information to the Marquette County Executive and Finance Committee about its bid to receive a federal recovery act grant that would bring a wireless internet choice to every resident of Marquette, Waushara, and Green Lake counties.

Granite Broadband recently made wireless available in Fond du Lac, Lomira, Oakfield, and Eden and is working with the Ripon School District to offer notebook computers and wireless service to every student at a cost of $8 a month per student.

Wireless internet service, said Franklin Cumberbatch from Granite Broadband, is five times as fast as DSL service. Many residents of rural counties have limited access to fast internet service, having to rely on dial-up or other slower choices. In this internet age, it often puts businesses, youth, and ordinary citizens at a disadvantage when competing with more urban areas. If the wireless service came to the tri-county area, other choices would still be available to residents, Cumberbatch said. The cost of the wireless service would be about $39 a month.

County Board Chair Howard Zellmer asked what would happen if Granite Broadband failed to get a federal grant. “I’m optimistic,” said Cumberbatch. “I’m not just sending our proposal in, I’ll be flying to Washington and telling them to look at the proposal.”
If his optimism didn’t yield results, he said, wireless would still come to Marquette County, but at a slower pace.

Granite Broadband is working with Tri County Economic Development Corporation (TREDC) and will be presenting information about their proposal at the full County Board meeting on Tuesday, March 16 at 7 PM. You can learn more about Granite Broadband by visiting their website at www.gbandinc.com.