On Monday, June 6, 2022, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (MI-08) joined local leaders and representatives from Surf Broadband Solutions to cut the ribbon on a partnership that will provide high speed internet access to almost 300 households in rural Cohoctah Township.
The project was made possible with funds from the American Rescue Plan. Slotkin advocated for funds to go directly to municipalities so that local leaders could make the best decisions based on their community priorities.
Slotkin said the Cohoctah Township is a case study in how to address the rural broadband issue across Michigan.
“It’s a great example of what federal dollars can do at the local level, when they’re put toward common purpose,” Slotkin said. “I am very proud to be standing here with a bunch of local leaders who — we don’t agree on everything, that’s for sure — I think they’d be the first to say that, but on this we agree: we need to get our rural communities the services that are now considered a utility. We need these things the way we need water and electricity in our homes. Our kids need it. Our businesses need it.”
“We’re just appreciative of Surf Broadband wanting to partner with our township and being able to use our ARPA funds to connect almost 280 homes and bring the fiber line right up to our township,” said Cohoctah Township Supervisor Mark Fosdick. “So now the township will be able to do Zoom meetings, and anything else that we’d be able to do with high speed Internet. We’re looking forward to working more to build out our unserved and underserved parts of the township.”
“We think this is a great example of a public-private partnership where taxpayer dollars and a private business came together to solve a need and we were able to address the needs of about 280 of the township residents,” said Gene Crusie, Surf Broadband Solutions CEO. “We believe broadband is the great equalizer — it gives Cohoctah Township access to the same services as Byron Center or Lansing or anywhere else. And we believe this is going to be transformational for the community.”
Cohoctah Township, located in the northwest quadrant of Livingston County, has roughly 1,200 households and is one of the largest farming communities in the county. The township received $349,000 in direct funding from the American Rescue Plan. Estimates show that roughly one in 10 households in Livingston County lacks access to high-speed broadband, hindering small businesses and students who are increasingly reliant on internet for school assignments.
