(La Porte County, IN) - La Porte County officials have done what’s required to blanket the county with broadband access. Now, officials anxiously wait for the state to decide whether the effort deserves blue ribbon status.

 

Last month, an application designating La Porte County as a “Broadband-Ready-Community” was submitted to the state. Tony Rodriquez, Director of the La Porte County Office of Economic and Community Development, said the state should act on the application shortly.

 

Broadband-Ready-Community designation would mean an estimated $130 million investment from service providers over several years to extend broadband access. Rodriguez said there would be no more service gaps to fill with such an investment.

 

Rodriquez gave credit for meeting all of the eligibility requirements to apply for the designation goes to the La Porte County Broadband Task Force, founded by La Porte County Commission President Sheila Matias.

 

The designation would inform service providers that La Porte County has a simplified process to follow for them to extend access to service. The process includes having a single contact person to try and meet the needs of service providers and assurance that a building permit can be issued in 10 days or less. 

 

Rodriquez believes that removing time-consuming red tape in the process is an incentive for service providers to invest in the county.

 

“It is exciting to know that not only is all of this work coming together at the right time, but we’re very methodically putting the tools in place to be able to knock down barriers that historically stood in the way of getting these investments done,” Rodriguez said.

La Porte County Commissioner Rich Mrozinski offered his praise for the recent achievement. 

 

“I could not be more proud of our task force’s dedication and commitment to solving this complex issue,” Mrozinski said.