At the Mayor’s Association breakfast in Riverside on Tuesday, Sain and Associates announced a project kick-off regarding broadband internet in St. Clair County. The first step of the initiative is getting the residents to take a survey about their internet usage and needs to compare with data that has been submitted to the Federal Communications Commission. 

“We’re doing a lot of planning around the state for different counties for their broadband, as we go around, we learn what a real need that is for communities. It’s an economic development issue, we can put in the roads and sewers, but unless we have adequate broadband, the industry is not going to come,” said Jim Meads, CEO and president of Sain Associates. 

Broadband internet refers to upload and download speeds of files, which is important for economic development, health care, education and emergency services. The current standards for broadband internet speed, as decided by the FCC, are a download speed of a minimum of 25 megabits per second and an upload speed of 3 MBPS.

The survey is called a Broadband Feasibility study. Some of the objectives include: creating coverage goals, documenting existing broadband infrastructure, addressing gaps in service and creating a compilation of information to be submitted for grant applications and other funding. 

Daniel Mellott, GIS manager at Sain Associates, said the survey will likely help bring more internet providers out to underserved areas of St. Clair County, giving residents more options for broadband internet. 

“Most of the citizens want a choice, if there’s only one choice out there, that internet provider can do whatever they want to do as far as setting standards and internet pricing,” said Mellott. 

Mellott said community feedback is crucial to validate data submitted to the FCC with actual speeds and coverage in the county. This helps by keeping the internet companies honest. He encouraged the mayors to return to their cities and share information with their residents. 

“In the end, the important thing is the county knows where the shortfalls are and what kind of projects and costs they need to address those issues,” said Mellott.

Don Smith, EDC Executive Director, said he hopes to see it promote higher residential developments, increase work from home opportunities in St. Clair and bring in more business competitors. 

There were a number of IT companies at one point that were interested in the Argo and Springville area, but they didn’t have the capability to upload and download files that they needed to be in business there,” Smith.

A link to the survey can be found on the county’s homepage at www.stclairco.com.

“It used to be power, gas, roads, water and sewer were the primary infrastructure that you needed to be able to have a good economy, but broadband is right there with it now,” said Smith.