High-speed broadband is coming to the underserved residents of New Buffalo Township! New Buffalo Township, as part of a county-wide initiative, worked closely with Midwest Energy and Communications (MEC) and the Berrien County Broadband Internet Taskforce (BCBIT) to bring this essential utility to the unserved, rural areas of Berrien County. MEC will bring broadband fiber to New Buffalo Township’s 158 unserved parcels and construction of this project is slated to begin the 2nd quarter of 2025.
Thankfully, the BCBIT Committee laid the groundwork for MEC to be awarded a ROBIN grant covering 85% of Berrien County’s unserved parcels. The Township has committed $106,650 of funds it received through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) as a local match for the ROBIN grant. Additionally, Berrien County has committed over 4.5 million of its ARPA funds as part of the local match. Both the Township and Berrien County have also set aside additional ARPA funds to address additional parcels that may be unserved, but not included in the ROBIN grant funding.
We strongly encourage you to go to MEC’s website to check if you are one of the eligible parcels. If you are, then you must sign up to receive service. There is a $100.00 signup fee that covers MEC running fiber optic cable from the street to your house. MEC cannot build to your property until the fee is paid.
Signing up is straightforward. Simply, go to MEC’s website at https://www.teammidwest.com/internet/ and click on “sign up for internet”. Indicate “No” when asked “Does MEC provide electricity at this address”. If you are told that “A registration already exists for this address” but you haven’t paid the fee or registered, then click “Start from the beginning” to re-register. Once signed up, you will get monthly construction updates via email. As is stands now, MEC plans to start it’s building out in New Buffalo Township in the 2nd quarter of 2025. If the website tells you that you are not eligible, please call Michelle Heit at 269-469-1011 extension 103 to investigate.
You can also visit https://www.teammidwest.com/internet/ for more information on MEC’s internet plans, construction plans, maps and more.