In this episode, Alberta's Minister of Technology and Innovation Nate Glubish, Minister of Transportation and Innovation Glenn Lawrence, Deputy Mayor of Strathcona County, Darren Hawkinson, Chief Executive Officer of SWITCH, and Speaker of the Camrose Constituent Association, Jackie Lovely, discuss the latest broadband announcement.
00:00:27.300It's commitment from our government to ensure
00:00:30.000all Albertans, regardless of when they live in our province, can connect to the internet and
00:00:34.940eliminate the digital divide. Because access to the internet is not a luxury, it's a way of life.
00:00:42.740And whether you're in Calgary or Tollfield, Alberta's government is taking action to ensure you can pay bills,
00:00:48.720take a course, search for a job, and connect with loved ones. I'd like to thank Nate Glubish,
00:00:54.840Minister of Technology and Innovation, Glenn Lawrence, Deputy Mayor of Strathcona County,
00:01:01.240Darren Hawkinson, the Chief Executive Officer for SWITCH, and guests joining us today.
00:01:07.100I'm eager to hear more about the details for this project and its benefits,
00:01:11.340and invite Minister Glubish to the podium to provide more information.
00:01:18.760Thank you, Jackie. Thanks for being here.
00:01:21.440right here in my own backyard of South Cooking Lake, part of Strathcona County. It's so good to
00:01:25.920be here as the local MLA for this region to be able to make an announcement about some really
00:01:31.920exciting investments in connectivity. As Emily Lovely said, we know as a government that
00:01:40.320connectivity is so important. We know that it is important to make sure that we get
00:01:45.760every single household in this province connected to reliable high-speed internet
00:01:50.480so that every alberton no matter where they live no matter what corner of the province they're in
00:01:55.120they can access the same information they can participate in the same economic upside and
00:02:00.160opportunities and they can have as good of an education for their kids as anyone else in an
00:02:05.920urban center and that is why we brought forward alberta's broadband strategy in 2022 that is why
00:02:11.760i was able to secure 390 million dollars of funding from the province of alberta to invest
00:02:17.440in this vital infrastructure and that is why i negotiated matching dollars from the federal
00:02:22.480government of another 390 million dollars and since that time frame we have been hard at work
00:02:28.800identifying the best partners who have the best projects to get the best connectivity
00:02:34.160delivered to every home in alberta and i am so excited today to be able to talk about one of
00:02:41.040those partnerships that is building connectivity infrastructure right here in strathcona county
00:02:46.320I'm pleased to announce that the governments of Alberta and Canada have jointly invested more than $380,000 through the Universal Broadband Fund to bring high-speed Internet to more than 4,300 households in Strathcona County and the surrounding areas in a partnership with Internet Service Provider Switch.
00:03:06.380And again, as Emily Lovely mentioned, we have CEO Darren Holkinson here with us.
00:03:12.380Looking forward to hearing from you shortly.
00:03:14.240This investment is a major step forward to bridging the digital divide in Alberta
00:03:18.200and, of course, in my home community of Strathcona County.
00:03:21.640For the folks that live out here in Cooking Lake and the surrounding areas,
00:03:24.860this means, finally, you will have access to reliable, high-speed internet.
00:03:30.360And it will allow you to connect with loved ones.
00:03:32.520It will allow you to get better education opportunities for your kids.
00:03:35.640It will allow you to fully participate in all our community has to offer.
00:03:39.500And Alberta's government is firmly committed to ensuring that that same hope, that same opportunity, that same access to connectivity is going to be accessible and available to all Albertans.
00:03:50.540And so that is, as I mentioned, with our broadband strategy and the $390 million of funding that we have committed, we are working hard to make sure that every single Albertan will have access.
00:04:00.340And I'm pleased to say that to date, we have now allocated nearly $371 million through the Universal Broadband Fund to 62 different projects across the province.
00:04:12.720And these projects will connect, once complete, over 51,000 households in 328 different communities to reliable, high-speed Internet.
00:04:27.160We always said that this was going to be a four-year plan.
00:04:29.340we're at about the halfway point and we're over halfway done. This is great news. I want to just
00:04:34.740again extend my congratulations to Switch on reaching this crucial stage of this build which
00:04:40.060I understand is close to a month from completion and so this is not just hope far off on the
00:04:46.560horizon. This is imminent. It's here. It's now. Construction is well underway on this project and
00:04:52.800this is going to impact the communities in Strathcona County, Beaver County. It's going to
00:04:57.420include parts of Sherwood Park. It's going to include Ardrossin. It's going to include,
00:05:01.100as I said, Cooking Lake, as well as Half Moon Estates and Collingwood Cove and many other
00:05:06.400great communities nearby. These investments are so important. They have such far-reaching impacts
00:05:13.020to so many families, and I couldn't be happier to be making this announcement here today. So,
00:05:18.440thanks again to Strathcona County for being here. Thank you, Deputy Mayor. Looking forward to hearing
00:05:22.400from you shortly. Thank you, Councillors Nelson and Hartwick for being here to show your support.
00:05:26.380Thank you, Emily Lovely, for all of your tireless advocacy in this important file and the work that you've done to support me on getting this done.
00:05:34.700And just looking forward to celebrating this exciting step forward for connectivity for Strathcona County and surrounding communities.
00:05:41.000With that, I'd like to pass the podium to my friend and colleague, Deputy Mayor Glenn Lawrence.
00:06:12.060Yes, for those who don't know me, my name is Glenn Lawrence.
00:06:15.220I'm the Councillor here for Ward 7 and Deputy Mayor for Strathcona County.
00:06:20.320It's my pleasure to be here today alongside Minister Glubish, my fellow councillors and
00:06:24.980representatives from Switch Incorporated to recognize what this project means to us all.
00:06:32.340I want to start by saying that this region is dear to my heart not just because I grew up here
00:06:37.460but because it's natural untouched beauty and privacy and quiet living it offers.
00:06:45.860I believe you feel the same way. I think we all appreciate our lifestyle
00:06:50.260out here while recognizing that we need to stay connected with the world at large more than ever.
00:06:57.140And of course that means embracing technology. As you know without reliable internet it's
00:07:02.100challenging to live, learn, work and play like everybody does. I know our values haven't changed
00:07:08.900too much. We still believe in hard work, supporting our neighbors and community and respecting the land
00:07:14.900But I think we all deserve to put those feet up after a hard day's work and expect the Netflix to stay sharp or Facebook, our faraway friends without a digital frog in our throat.
00:07:31.200A run or a run at Teams meetings without faces getting stuck in some silly way.
00:07:36.960The internet is now a regular part of our day and high-speed internet is no longer a luxury, it's a necessity.
00:07:44.900It's important today as roads, electricity, and running water, and it's the gateway to a connected and informed future.
00:07:53.280That's why I'm very proud of the advocacy work that Strathcona County has done and continues to do to bring improved internet services to our communities.
00:08:03.320With this investment in the future of our region, we can expect improved internet connectivity
00:08:10.020for hundreds of rural households, numerous businesses and industries around the Cooking
00:08:18.500We are immensely grateful to our provincial and federal partners, as well as Switch Incorporated
00:08:24.300for ensuring that more people in our region can access high-speed internet.
00:08:28.920As internet expansion is a federal undertaking, we will continue to advocate for better internet locally for all communities around Strathcona County so that everyone across the region can enjoy the same high standard of internet service.
00:11:17.240Hi, Theodora McLeod with Sherwood Park News. I'm just wondering, is there any guarantee with this service that costs will be comparable to those that are paid by people living in the cities?
00:11:29.620So when we navigate which partners we're going to select through our funding, we cover a number of things.
00:11:36.920First, we want to make sure that the partners have the technical expertise to deliver a reliable service,
00:11:43.020because if folks log in and then they can't actually access anything, then it was all for nothing,
00:11:47.560and I don't want to subsidize anything that doesn't work.
00:11:51.100Second, we want to make sure that the company is stable enough to finish the job and see it through to completion,
00:11:57.960and then offer that service for the long term.
00:12:01.020Third, we want to make sure that it's scalable going into the future