Windom leads Minnesota in broadband development, infrastructure

WINDOM, Minn. (KEYC) — Jeff Dahna is the General Manager of WindomNet, Windom’s Internet provider.

This month, Windomnet was recognized with a Courageous Leadership Award from the Blandin Foundation for their leadership in Broadband.

Windom became the state’s first city to operate a municipal fiber-to-the-home network between 2004 and 2005.

Now, schools are able to use Broadband Internet to help students complete homework at home online.

Medical facilities can take advantage of telemedicine opportunities.

And Broadband Internet provides opportunities for residents, like Dahna, to work from home.

“Instead of having to travel for two hours, you can take something in 20 minutes and have it completed, that might, you’d have to travel to work.”

Dahna is also involved in working with the project.

This fiber optic system takes telephone, Internet and video and combines it into one system to send it out to customer locations.

Windom also serves as a leader to other cities when it comes to Broadband.

“There’s eight communities there that we worked with them a number of years ago to build a 125-mile fiber ring, and then they built out the system to the homes in each one of those communities from there,” City Administrator Steve Nasby said.

Dahna says the building has grown into a central Broadband location.

“It’s been difficult in the rural areas for some communities to have that access. But with Windom being here, we’re kind of a central hub that other companies have built fiber-optic connections throughout the city."

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