AT A GLANCE:
North Conejos, Colorado

MIRA status:
Round: 2
Grant Type: CCT

Goal Areas:
Increase community Internet access

Contact:

North Conejos team members at a MIRA workshop

From the San Luis Valley MIRA Cluster website:

The North Conejos Team came together through the W.K. Kellogg Foundation "Managing Information with Rural America" initiative. We are a diverse group of community members working together to enhance our community infrastructure.

After attending six, Saturday training workshops our team received a grant to complete a project dealing with communication and information technology. We chose high-speed, wireless Internet access. This project was initiated to provide our rural community with increased access to the Internet and the Information Age. Homeowners are currently dialing in over our slow and unreliable telephone lines. By bypassing this connection, our community has greater opportunity to participate in the Information Age and develop our economic and communication opportunities.

We are offering ten community members a subsidy for wireless Internet service which guarantees a 64K minimum speed for 24 hours a day at $30 per month. We will pay the installation costs and the home user pays the $30 per month service fee to access the Internet through Amigo.Net, our local Internet Service Provider partner. To receive these benefits, the following basic items are needed: provide and install a grounded pole with line-of-sight to our transmitter; be willing to attend a networking and a training workshop; sign a contract for one year; and approved applicants should be willing to help themselves and our community access the Internet.