The quest to cover Door County with high-speed internet moved to the assessment phase on Thursday. With the goal of getting fiber broadband to all Door County households and businesses where feasible in the next few years, the Door County Economic Development Corporation selected Finley Engineering in Altoona to do an assessment. DCEDC Executive Director, Steve Jenkins, feels that they selected one of the top broadband consultants in the country to study ways and costs to provide these services. Jenkins also expects the study to conclude no later than October. 

After the assessment, there could be a bridge, or “interim” program, in place before the goal of county-wide fiber is achieved. Jenkins says patience from the county will be critical, especially where there are factors, especially in northern Door, where there can be obstacles such as the number of trees and rolling terrain. 

Jenkins felt that this last year also highlighted the growing importance of reliable broadband access, especially with tel-e-health visits becoming increasingly common. 

Jenkins also sees this as useful with more people working remotely. He says there are a number of people who are interested in Door County as a place to live, but would need to be afforded broadband access to do so. Jenkins added that the next step after completing the study is finding out what the delivery of fiber services will look like. Jenkins vows that the DCEDC will be aggressive in solving broadband issues in both the short and long term.