Broadband Access Not Always Accessible All Over the State

It's nice to get away, isn't it? But how many of us actually truly unplug while we're up north on vacation? Not many, probably, and it can get pretty darn frustrating when internet signals go in and out.

And it's not just in the more rural parts of Wisconsin that signals get spotty. Urban and suburban neighborhoods suffer the same issue, which can interfere in some cases with fully implementing curriculum in school that needs the technology.

Well, the Public Service Commission is hosting a public meeting to address these concerns from 3 to 5 pm on Tues., Feb. 7, at Mount Pleasant Village Hall, 8811 Campus Drive. The municipal campus is located just north of the intersection of 90th Street and Highway 20.

Here's the full press release from the PSC:

A team of Southeast Wisconsin community leaders, working together with the Public Service Commission (PSC) is striving to fill gaps in broadband (high speed Internet) availability and improve adoption of available broadband services in the region. The Southeast Wisconsin Regional Broadband Planning Team, have scheduled a public meeting to facilitate discussion between broadband providers, broadband users, government officials as well as the general public.

Team Member Daniel Honore, Director of Information Services for the Kenosha Unified School District noted, "Broadband is as needed today as electricity was in 1930. Broadband is critical for public safety, education, health care, employment searches and community engagement - all elements that contribute to a high quality of life in a community. 

The public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 7 from 3:00 to 5:00 pm in the Mount Pleasant Village Hall, 8811 Campus Drive, Mount Pleasant, WI. The purpose of the meeting is to launch initiatives to fill in gaps in broadband availability and improve adoption of available broadband services. Light refreshments will be served.

The agenda is as follows:

3:00 p.m. Welcome and Overview
3:15 p.m. Identification of Gaps
3:30 p.m. Broadband Service Provider Panel
4:45 p.m. Call to Action: Where We Go From Here

The Southeast Wisconsin Regional Broadband Planning Team includes representatives from education, health care, business, libraries, regional planning and more. The team's goal is to elicit public and private investment of time and money for more broadband adoption and deployment in the region. The team has developed a draft plan, available online at www.link.wisconsin.gov) is designed to enhance the regional economic development and quality of life by refining understanding of broadband service gaps and potential actions to close those gaps. One purpose of the public meeting is to recruit people interested in helping to move the plan forward, and help bring broadband to the region.