Internet is slow on Beaver Island, Michigan, but a rural grant could help

Internet connections on Beaver Island (MI) can be hit or miss, and it often depends on whether you can get a cell signal. For years, residents of remote Beaver Island more than 30 miles offshore from the mainland in northern Lake Michigan have said they want better internet access. They specifically want fiber-optic connections to every home, business, and community gathering place. That destination is becoming visible on the horizon. Michigan state officials recently announced a state rural readiness grant for the nonprofit Beaver Island Association to plot a course to extend broadband internet across the community, confirm build-out costs, and establish a township-owned system to provide high-speed internet service. A $43,000 grant to Beaver Island was among $1.3 million in Michigan rural readiness grants announced by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI). Those funds are intended to help rural communities build capacity, drive economic development and improve quality of life for residents.