GLYNDON, Minn. — When all the fiber-optic is in and all the switches are turned on, Glyndon will be home to some of the fastest and strongest high-speed internet in the country: a 10-gigabit internet connection.
After years of asking and planning, city officials and Midco are about to roll-out this much talked about launch in one of our region's smaller, expanding communities.
Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, people living in all of our cities are taking note of our internet's capabilities including Glyndon City Council Member Dave Owings.
"All the kids have electronic devices going on, home-schooling, distance learning, with COVID, everyone working from home," Owing said.
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After meeting with Midco for many months, Glyndon received the first piece of the pie. Fiber optics are being installed, and categorized as the "next generation high speed internet."
"Anywhere from 72-148 of strands of glass in the fiber optic cable. Improvement really is the tech riding on the fiber," said Midco Director of Construction Cole Mack.
"This is a new platform. A 10-gig, ethernet platform. A 10-gig EPON (Ethernet Passive Optical Network) that feeds a service to customers," he said.
The first installation occurred this past week, with more to follow. Glyndon, Minnesota joins one community, in South Dakota, for this nation-wide launch.
"The potential to have a 5 gigabit download and upload symmetrical package, is not offered anywhere in the Upper Midwest and most of the country," Mack said.
The towns located along Highway 10 may soon experience technology with more capacity and speed.
The whole town of Glyndon is expected to be connected by mid-December.
