*****State of Michigan's Interactive ROBIN Grant Award Map*****

***BCBIT INTERACTIVE MAP INCLUDES ROBIN GRANT, AND CURRENT PARCEL STATUS***

St. Joseph, Michigan, June 20, 2023 – ROBIN AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT - The Michigan High-Speed Internet Office announced its initial recommendations for the Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks (ROBIN) program today. This grant program will potentially bring reliable, high-speed broadband service to 10,081 residents and businesses in Berrien County, 5,256 of which currently lack access to broadband.

Midwest Energy & Communications (MEC) submitted a $56.4 million application for ROBIN funding to expand internet service in Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph, and Van Buren counties. The application included a $15.5 million investment from MEC and requested $27.6 million from the State. Berrien, Cass, and Van Buren Counties, along with townships and villages in the proposed counties committed over $13 million.  Full Berrien County-MEC Press Release.

***ROBIN GRANT RESOURCES***

ROBIN Interactive GRANT MAP!

Download COMPLETE List of ADDRESSES by Proposed Projects!

Berrien County ROBIN Grant Map (PDF)

Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks (ROBIN) Grant Program Web-Page

***BCBIT RESOURCES***

DASHBOARDS and Municipal BROADBAND Maps

Check out FCC's new National Broadband Map - You can challenge the results!

Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) - See If You Qualify!

View PARCEL STATUS of Proposed Fiber Service Areas!

About Berrien County Broadband Internet Task Force - BCBIT. 

In April of 2019, the Berrien County Board of Commissioners passed resolution F1904199 which identified reliable, high speed, affordable access to the internet and e-connectivity as being imperative for Berrien County residents, businesses, non-profit organizations and visitors alike, and acknowledged that access to the internet and e-connectivity is a crucial part of the Berrien County mission.  As the Board of Commissioners set the operational objectives for 2019-2020, they included a focus on support and improvement of county infrastructure - to include but not be limited to staff and financial resources to be utilized in the pursuit of all options available to bring high speed internet to the unserved and underserved areas of Berrien County. Three commissioners were appointed to a sub-committee - Teri Freehling, Jim Curran, and Ezra Scott and in their work with other agencies aiming for the same goal, the Berrien County Broadband Internet Task Force was formed. 

The Board contracted with Merit Network Inc., resolution F2012421, to collect the data needed to move forward with that objective and pushed out a county-wide survey to seek the input needed from as many residents as possible. In February of 2021, that information was sent out in the form of a press release and the survey was made available on the Berrien County website as well as other means of communication.  Following the collection of that data, and final report from this survey further mapping and services were needed related to that data. The Board of Commissioners authorized a contract with the Southwest Michigan Planning Commission for the purposes of taking the broadband data that was collected and converting it to GIS Storymap presentation materials.  

The work of the Task Force continues. 

As funds from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) flow into Berrien County, one of the approved uses of the funds is to invest in broadband in underserved and unserved areas.  The federal government guidelines allow Berrien County to sub-grant a portion of their allocated ARPA funds to local entities for the purpose of deploying broadband.  in January of 2022, the Berrien County Board of Commissioners approved Resolution B2201191 beginning the application process for those funds. The application inviting local entities to request those sub-granted ARPA funds is now CLOSED. 

On June 20, 2022 the State of Michigan's High-Speed Internet Office, MIHI, announced its initial recommendations for the Realizing Opportunity with Broadband Infrastructure Networks (ROBIN) program. If fully funded by the State, Berrien County will commit nearly $4.5 million, and 16 townships and villages will commit over $2.7 million. MEC will begin construction in the fall of 2023 and will finish by the end of 2026. Customers will get activated once construction in their specific area is complete, and those exact plans have yet to be determined. The ROBIN program now enters a 45-day objection period, and final awards will be determined after objections have been validated. The State expects to make final award announcements in August 2023 and stresses that not all applications will receive full funding due to the objections. For more information see full Press Release.
  

SEE PARCEL STATUS OF PROPOSED FIBER SERVICE AREAS
PFSAs are contiguous geographic (service) areas containing funding eligible parcels grouped together.

Agendas & Minutes

• To view agendas and minutes, visit the Agenda Center.

mORE Resources 

• Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) - See If You Qualify!
• Digital Equity and Inclusion Resources
• BCBIT Story Map - Review the timeline of events in the BCBIT project.
• Survey Results Interactive Map - See the results of 2021 community broadband survey.
• Berrien County Broadband Survey Results (PDF)
• BCBIT March 17 2022 Municipality Presentation
• Merit Network - The Michigan Moonshot Broadband Framework - Solving Broadband Access Challenges
• Berrien County BoC Overview - DCS Technology Design (PDF)
• Dashboards and Municipal Broadband Maps
• Check out FCC's new National Broadband Map - You can challenge the results!