Community Input about Broadband Internet Service Needed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2022

St. Helens, Ore. – The City of St. Helens is continuing to seek community feedback about bringing a high-quality, low-cost internet service to the St. Helens area through a public-private partnership. The network would provide residential and business coverage to everyone in St. Helens. 

“We know there is a desire for robust broadband in St. Helens,” said Matt Brown, finance director for the City of St. Helens. “We hear about it constantly, and we are ready to move forward. But first, we need more data from the community so we can document needs and demand to make an economic case for this essential infrastructure.”

If you live or work in St. Helens and haven’t taken the broadband survey yet, please complete the survey as soon as possible at www.sthelensoregon.gov/administration/page/broadband-assessment.

“We also encourage you to let your workplace know about the survey and ask the owner or a manager to complete it,” said Brown. This survey is a continuation of the previous survey that was opened in October 2021. The City received very few business responses to the initial survey. A larger response rate from both businesses and residents can help St. Helens more easily secure funding for broadband. One survey can be completed per household and one survey for each business or organization.  

Why is the broadband assessment important and what is the purpose? “Oregon estimates it will receive approximately $200 million in federal funding through the American Rescue Plan Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” said Brown. “This assessment will document the needs and demand for robust broadband infrastructure and put St. Helens in a solid position to move forward with applications for state and federal grants, loans, and other potential financing sources.”

The City’s vision is to build a fiber optic network to every premise in the city so that all residents and businesses in St. Helens have access to high-quality internet connectivity. This digital infrastructure is essential to St. Helens’ future economic and civic vitality.

Additionally, digital infrastructure helps drive innovation and advance services. This benefits St. Helens by growing an innovative and more sustainable economy, broadening education and workforce development opportunities, improving health and well-being, and enhancing the quality of life for everyone in the community.

“Eighty percent of the workforce living in St. Helens travels 30 or more minutes to their jobs in Hillsboro, Beaverton and Portland,” said Brown. “What if we could bring those jobs to St. Helens by allowing more people to work remotely? What if we could attract and retain new employers looking to relocate from expensive real estate in the urban areas? What if we could attract parents looking to raise their children in a family-friendly place like St. Helens that values good schools, easy access to the river and nature, and is considered safe and community-oriented?”

Strategic Networks Group (SNG), the consulting group engaged to conduct the St. Helens residential and business eCheckups, has many success stories that show their approach to digging deep for data works.

“We document needs and market demand, which is what funders and investors need to understand,” said Michael Curri, president of SNG. “Using the data that we provided, Custer County Economic Development Corporation in Colorado was able to secure $2 million in federal funds to build additional infrastructure that brought new or improved broadband to an additional 40% of its residents.”

“This is literally a once-in-a-generation opportunity to address rural broadband needs,” said Joe Franell, chair of the Oregon Broadband Advisory Council. “While programs through schools and other public entities offered short-term solutions during the pandemic, rural communities must now work to create lasting broadband solutions to build long-term resiliency and opportunity.”

For more information about the Residential and Business eCheckups or Strategic Networks Group, contact St. Helens City Hall at 503-397-6272.

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For further information regarding the St. Helens Broadband Survey, please contact Communications Officer Crystal King at cking@sthelensoregon.gov.