Given the stay-at-home orders issued by the Governors of Michigan and Indiana we are discontinuing in-home fiber installations until April 13. We know this service is more important than ever as people find themselves doing work and school from home; however, it is imperative that we do our part to contain this virus. Currently outside fiber construction is also paused, but we are working with our contractors on a day to day basis to see what construction can be accomplished during this period.

In the interim, our team has implemented a process to provide necessary equipment along with instructions and telephone support to enable self-installs for households that are ready for activation. Customers must meet certain qualifications for this option as there are some stringent requirements to ensure the viability and reliability of the service. Our representatives will reach out directly to customers who are eligible for this self-install process.  At this time, we ask that you not contact us about the self-install due to the number of calls we are currently receiving.

Thank you for your understanding and patience as we navigate these uncharted waters.

WiFi at the Township Hall

The WiFi at the Township Hall is available for public use. Residents are welcome to park in the Township parking lot and access the WiFi. You should park near the front of the building – the WiFi access point is on the northeast corner of the building. The wireless networks are “Lyndon Public 5GHz” and “Lyndon Public 2.4GHz”. The 5GHz network can yield faster speeds but has shorter coverage, the 2.4GHz can yield slower speeds but has better coverage. Speeds are highly affected by distance from the access point, how much the metal in your car blocks the signal, and other factors. Please note that while the Township Hall has a 1 Gbps connection, actual speeds on WiFi will be slower than this.

Lyndon Township & Broadband Project COVID-19 Response

The Governor has issued Executive Directive No. 2020-2 with respect to the Open Meetings Act. The township will continue to hold public meetings via audio & video conferencing only and will only conduct business via phone, email, mail and dropbox (at the Township Hall) for the next 3 weeks (4-4-2020). Some meetings will be canceled and rescheduled. The Township doors will be locked. The conference call in number and meeting code will be noticed on the Lyndon Township website http://www.twp-lyndon.org for each meeting. We ask for your patience as we work through these challenging times. 

With many residents now conducting work and educational activities from home, we understand that broadband has become even more critical. While many Lyndon Township residents now have access to broadband, we know that many others have yet to be hooked up. The Lyndon Township Broadband Oversight and Implementation Committees are working together to explore measures to help residents who do not yet have access to broadband.

WiFi at the Township Hall
The WiFi at the Township Hall is available for public use. Residents are welcome to park in the Township parking lot and access the WiFi. You should park near the front of the building – the WiFi access point is on the northeast corner of the building. The wireless networks are “Lyndon Public 5GHz” and “Lyndon Public 2.4GHz”. The 5GHz network can yield faster speeds but has shorter coverage, the 2.4GHz can yield slower speeds but has better coverage. Speeds are highly affected by distance from the access point, how much the metal in your car blocks the signal, and other factors. Please note that while the Township Hall has a 1 Gbps connection, actual speeds on WiFi will be slower than this.

Expediting home connections
Both Lyndon Broadband committees understand the frustration of residents who have signed up for service but are not yet connected. Even before the COVID-19 concerns, the Implementation Committee has been working to get the remaining residents connected as quickly as possible. The current construction schedule that was just released represents the best estimate for when home installations are likely to occur in each zone. (http://www.lyndonbroadband.org/2020/03/14/lyndon-broadband-project-status-update-3-14-2020/)  We are working to see if there is any way we can get people connected more quickly while still staying within the budget that is available for the project, although at this time we cannot promise to go any faster than the current estimates.

Maintaining the current schedule
The Lyndon Broadband committees are working with MEC to monitor whether COVID-19 is likely to impact the schedule for the remaining construction and installations. At this time there are no delays due to COVID-19. Outdoor fiber work continues as planned. Home installations are continuing as they become available. MEC’s in-home installers will not continue to work if they show any signs of illness. MEC installers will call before coming onsite to ensure no residents in the household are showing signs of illness.

Speed for activated households
To help support their subscribers during this time, MEC has temporarily increased the speed on all plans below 100 Mbps to 100 Mbps. 

Additional measures
The Lyndon Broadband committees are is exploring additional measures to provide relief to residents who do not yet have access to broadband, and will make further announcements if any of these measures are implemented.

Thank you for your patience during this difficult time. If you have any questions or concerns please email lyndonbroadband1@gmail.com. 

Lyndon Broadband Project Status Update
Prepared by Implementation Committee
March 14, 2020

As spring draws near, the Lyndon Township Broadband Implementation Committee is pleased to provide an update on what work has been completed over the winter, and an installation schedule for residents who are not yet connected.

MAINLINE CONSTRUCTION

The most significant part of the mainline construction project, accounting for about 90% of the construction cost and the longest part of the timeline, is the installation of underground conduit via directional boring. Our construction contractor Henkels and McCoy has been continuing at a good pace throughout the winter, and we are pleased to announce that this part of the project is complete! It is a big milestone to have all of the conduit in the ground, and we are excited to share this good news.

FIBER PLACEMENT AND SPLICING

As the conduit is built underground, the next step is to install fiber optic cable in the conduit and splice it to make the correct connections. We encountered problems with the quality and speed of the fiber placement and splicing work done by Henkels & McCoy. When the work quality problems were detected, we stopped Henkels & McCoy from completing further fiber work. After significant analysis and discussion, the Lyndon Township Broadband Implementation Committee recommended, and the Lyndon Township Board approved the transfer of the remaining fiber placement and splicing work to MEC and their subcontractors. This change is estimated to be cost neutral and with MEC handling all the remaining installation tasks, we feel confident in the new estimated schedule that MEC has provided us.

ESTIMATED SCHEDULE

The estimated schedule for most zones still aligns with the estimated schedule we released last fall.  The two zones where the schedule was most impacted are Central Office and Boyce. This is largely due to the time taken to analyze and execute on the best path forward after problems were discovered with the fiber placement and splicing in these zones done by Henkels & McCoy. The volunteers that make up the Implementation Committee recognize our responsibility to our fellow Lyndon Township residents for the project schedule and budget. The new estimates are intended to be conservative and it is our hope, though we can’t promise, that we may be able to find ways to improve upon this timeline.

The township has been divided into 11 zones or in networking terms, PONs (Passive Optical Networks). These zones represent the sequence in which construction and installations will occur. You can find your zone here: http://www.lyndonbroadband.org/zone-map/

Werkner

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation complete
• Drop installation complete
• Home installations: 98% (87) complete (a few waiting for homeowner to call back for scheduling).

Island Lake

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation complete
• Drop installation complete
• Home installations 94% (63) complete (a few waiting for homeowner to call back for scheduling).

Central Office

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation complete (some repairs still underway)
• Drop installations: 92% (82) complete
• Home installations underway  6% (5) complete, others being scheduled

Boyce

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation complete (some repairs still underway – one section of fiber to be replaced)
• Drop installations complete
• Home installations to begin late April

Sugarloaf

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation complete
• Drop installations to begin in mid-April
• Home installations to begin in late May

Guinan

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation 49%, to be completed in mid-May
• Drop installations to begin in mid-May
• Home installations to begin in late May 

Long Lake

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation 64%, to be completed in mid-May
• Drop installations to begin in late May
• Home installations to begin in mid-June

Wild Goose

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation 24%, to be completed in early June
• Drop installations to begin in early June
• Home installations to begin in late June

Bruin

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation 0%, to be completed in early July
• Drop installations to begin in late June
• Home installations to begin in early July

Joslin

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation 0%, to be completed in mid-July
• Drop installations to begin in early July
• Home installations to begin in late July

Ellsworth

• Mainline boring complete
• Mainline fiber installation 0%, to be completed in early August
• Drop installations to begin in mid-July
• Home installations to begin in mid-August.

As always, please reach out to lyndonbroadband1@gmail.com with any questions.