Lac Ste. Anne County held an open house Feb. 16 in Darwell to inform area residents of the county’s progress installing wireless communications towers to better provide Internet and cellular service.
The meeting, one of three scheduled in communities in the county – the others being Glenevis on Feb. 21 and Mayerthorpe on Feb. 23 – drew close to 30 people to the Darwell Centennial Hall to meet with and talk to county representatives about the project.
Allan Bly, a project consultant, said the county is just at the beginning of fanning out communications towers across the rural areas in the county. It’s a five to 10 year project, he said, with the aim being to have 11-15 towers built once things are completed.
However, he said the final timeline for getting the towers built and operational will depend on funding.
Assistant county manager Mike Primeau said the open house is a critical information tool to let residents know what is going on, especially considering the poor quality of wireless service the county receives.
“This is a terrible area for mobile and Internet service,” he said.
County reeve Lloyd Giebelhaus was also in attendance, and explained one of the primary reasons for going ahead with the project.
“Essentially, it’s to provide rural residents with the same amenities that the urban population has in Alberta,” he said, adding it will help with communications and public safety.
In addition, it will be an opportunity to improve education services, as children will be able to access the Internet at home.
“It’s all the things the urban centres take for granted,” Giebelhaus said.
The tower in Darwell is already standing, Primeau said. However, it won’t be operational until some time in April, although he refused to provide a set date for when that would happen, citing the possibility of unforeseen events throwing a wrench into those plans.
So far, Giebelhaus said he has heard very few complaints and concerns about the towers. Instead, the feedback he’s received that isn’t supportive has been in the form of questions — usually asking when the towers will be up and running, and why they’re not functioning yet.
That being said, when he has received negative feedback, once he’s explained what the towers will do and won’t do, the person has changed over to supporting the project and wanting it completed faster, he said.
Once the towers are completed, Giebelhaus said Lac Ste. Anne County will be a “connect community.”
“The possibilities will be endless,” he said. “We’re one step closer to being an ‘intelligent’ community.”
Primeau added that as times have changed, reliable broadband Internet access has evolved from a commodity to a utility.
“It’s now a necessity of life,” he said, adding that currently about 37 per cent of county residents are not served by reliable, high-speed Internet, which is a situation that needs to be addressed.
That’s a fact Giebelhaus said is not very well known.
“People don’t know that rural Alberta is largely underserved,” he said. “But the direction is changing and we’re on the highway now.”
