During the Holbrook City Council meeting on Jan. 13, the council approved supporting the Navajo County Middle Mile Broadband Network joint letter, which addresses the county’s plan to create a middle mile infrastructure project.
Navajo County Facilities Administrative Assistant Michelle Marquardt and County Board Supervisor Fern Benally addressed the council to explain the project. According to Marquardt, in 2020, Navajo County hired a company that helped develop a broadband masterplan to figure out how to get reliable broadband to the county, where internet dependability has been a concern. “Based on that plan what was determined was that there is no redundancy in Navajo County. So, when one part of it goes out, we all go out.”
To mitigate this issue, the county is proposing to apply to the Arizona Commerce Authority to implement a redundant loop that would take broadband middle mile fiber from Holbrook to throughout the county. “The intent would be that this would be County owned middle mile network that then third-party internet service providers can come into our community and lease that fiber to provide last mile internet services out to businesses and residents throughout Navajo County,” said Marquardt.
When Council Member Tim Dixon asked if it was possible to find middle mile network in last mile infrastructure, Marquardt explained that the middle mile network is the highway system that gets the service from place to place. “It really functions as the roadway, whereas last mile is the service that actually comes to your home. It’s the wires that are required to actually hook up your internet or get service to the home.”
Marquardt added that service providers are reluctant to work in rural communities due to the middle mile being the most expensive aspect of those systems. “Service providers are hesitant to invest in rural communities because it is so expensive to invest in that middle mile infrastructure because we are all so spread out.”
The project is anticipated to cost between $17 and $20 million dollars to build out this middle mile infrastructure, with funds from the American Rescue Plan Act. “We are confident that we will be able to get the funding for the middle mile infrastructure, all $17 million through this round of funding from Commerce Authority,” said Marquardt.
The council proclaimed the week of Feb. 1-4, as Hashknife Pony Express Week. The council heard from Hashknife Captain Mark Reynolds, who thanked the board and stated that the ride would be devoted to those members who had passed last year. “Twenty-twenty-one was pretty hard on everybody, and it was extremely hard on the Hashknife,” he stated, “We lost four of our regular members and this year we have dedicated this ride to their memory: John Veenedahl, Wade Carlisle, Jerry Young and Bob Cassidy.”
City Manager Ted Soltis announced that the city will be receiving a grant from ADOT (Arizona Department of Transportation) for an airport pavement preservation program in the amount of $171,561, which will require a 10% match. He also added that the city will soon be replacing windows and repairing gutters at the police station. Work is also being done on the Lizitsky Park concession stand. “The next project we’ve got coming up is going to be the restrooms at the golf course.” Soltis added that Barrow Field would be added to the parks renovation grant to provide lighting and replacing the bleachers.
In other business, the council:
* Approved a resolution designating authority to execute an airport rescue grant in the amount of $22,000 in federal funding, with councilmembers Adam Marsh, Earl Kester, Mike Nilsson, Kip Woolford and Mayor Merrill Young in favor, and Tim Dixon in opposition with objections to the federal requirement of wearing masks while at the airport, as well as the Federal Government’s ability to use the land without cost. Vice Mayor Francie Payne was not present.
* Approved the purchase of bleachers for Hunt Park’s baseball fields in the amount of $21,395 through Jaypro Bleachers.
* Approved the applications for a beer and wine liquor license for the Travel Centers of America, located at 3747 Express Drive and the Holbrook 76 Station, located at 1300 Navajo Blvd.
* Approved an ordinance permitting the development of condominiums and townhouses within Holbrook.
