The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe has secured $4.65 million to provide high-speed internet on its reservation in Colorado by 2024.
The tribe was awarded $1.15 million from the Colorado Health Foundation for the project.
The funding provides the 25% match for a $3.5 million internet services grant the tribe recently received from the Colorado High Cost Support Mechanism Fund.
The broadband project will be managed under the Ute Mountain Communications Enterprise.
The major broadband infrastructure investment will provide affordable services to Ute Mountain homes and businesses by 2024, said Tribal Chairman Manuel Heart, in a news release.
He said many homes and businesses on the reservation are underserved, with less than the Federal Communications Commission minimum speeds of 25 megabits per second upload and 3 megabits per second download.
The increased internet speed and capacity are essential, officials said.
“Broadband speeds will make a meaningful difference to our communities for economic development, education and health care, improving government services and keeping communities vital,” the news release stated.
The COVID-19 pandemic hit rural tribal reservations without good internet access especially hard, as more of daily life switched to online commerce and interactions because of shutdowns.
The situation further compounded economic challenges of tribes, and investment in broadband is expected to ease the downturn while preparing the region to be more resilient to future economic stressors.
“The Foundation saw an opportunity to impact youth living on the reservation in terms of online education as well as the ability to begin to offer virtual behavioral health and primary care visits to Coloradans living on the reservation,” said Dr. Ben Bynum, of the Colorado Health Foundation. “Also, reliable broadband enables the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe to create and support its own e-commerce marketplace – driving wealth creation that can remain within their community.”
Rural areas say federal and state grant funding is critical for improving broadband infrastructure because the market is unappealing for companies to invest.
Ute Mountain officials said access to reliable broadband services is the biggest obstacle to implementing strategies to improve the economy, workforce development and education.
“Many of our rural homes and businesses only have access to low-quality, line-of-sight wireless or high-cost satellite services,” the tribe stated in a news release. “We need to have sufficient broadband infrastructure to support people working from home and from their offices, our students to attend classes and our citizens in getting access to health care services.”
Additional broadband projects are also being planned for members living on the reservation in White Mesa, Utah, Heart said.
jmimiaga@the-journal.com
