A years-long community project to bring broadband internet to Monhegan Island will be complete by June 5, connecting its residents to faster service.
The island, which is about 10 miles due south of St. George, has a population of 119 people. The island uses a microwave radio that goes from the island to the shore and provides the community with internet service through the telephone lines, said Nick Battista, the chief policy officer for the Island Institute.
But broadband installation will allow people on the island to transmit data — whether it’s video calls, files or even phone calls — much faster.
“Getting broadband will help them join the rest of us where we don’t think about the internet, we don’t think about how slow internet is and how it’s not a hindrance to living your daily life, to working, to connecting with your family,” Battista said.
Monhegan isn’t the first Maine island to get broadband. It will join several others, including Islesboro, Cliff Island and Swan’s Island. And, like some other islands with broadband access, such as Isleboro and Cliff Island, Monhegan will own its internet service.
Since Monhegan’s current service uses the phone lines, it’s owned by Consolidated Communications, which owns many of the phone systems in Maine, Battista said. Some on the island also use Redzone Wireless and Great Works Internet. However, because of its small size and the need to keep repairs quick after storms, the community decided to take ownership of its internet services and contracted with Axiom, a company headquartered in Machias.
The island will also have fiber optics that will connect everyone’s house to the tower, Battista said.
Talks about getting broadband started as early as 2016, Battista said. By 2019, the community applied for a $600,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture, which it received in 2020. The island also got financial help for the $1.2 million project from the ConnectMaine Authority and other state funds, Battista said. He estimated that the town contributed around $150,000 to $200,000 for the project.
Monhegan will be having a celebration for its broadband installation on June 5.
