Broadband is now considered a critical community infrastructure necessary to survive and thrive.  Community leaders want the infrastructure and services present in their community to be world-class so as to be a magnet for economic development, including investment and talented people.

This assessment tool will help local leaders investigate, consider, understand and discuss the state of the community’s broadband infrastructure and services. This tool incorporates measures of broadband speed, ubiquity, competition, redundancy and partnership.  In many areas, community broadband consideration has moved beyond the city limits to the community’s market area or to individual townships, the entire county or tribal reservation.  This tool allows analysis at any geography, recognizing that larger geographies are likely to have wide variations in broadband availability.

It is recommended that you print a copy of the assessment for use as a worksheet prior to completing the assessment online.

We recommend that a small community team tackle this assessment together using their combined knowledge of the area’s broadband picture.  Technologists from local tech support and other companies, school districts and hospitals will know the answers to many of these questions.  You could include area broadband providers as key resources in completing and validating the assessment as well as moving to fill in identified broadband gaps.  You will find information at the Minnesota DEED Office of Broadband web site (http://mn.gov/deed/programs-services/broadband/maps-tests/index.jsp) that will also be helpful, but should be verified for accuracy to your particular location.

• Click HERE to download a copy of the assessment.
• Click HERE to begin the assessment.  Make sure that you print the results of your assessment using your web browser.

You may find that your community has world-class broadband services; that would be a reason for celebration and promotion.  You may find that you are generally well served, but have critical gaps in infrastructure or could benefit from increased competition.  This tool will point you to next steps whatever your situation.

You should share the results of the assessment with your existing or prospective broadband providers.  You should also review the results with your legislators, county board and city council.

You can find broadband planning assistance with either the Blandin Foundation (broadband@blandinfoundation.org) or the DEED Office of Broadband Development (http://mn.gov/deed/programs-services/broadband/index.jsp).  Non-Minnesota communities should identify similar resources in your own state.