Bug Tussel moves in to Denmark area

Last month, Denmark area residents gained a new option for their internet service needs. On April 17, Bug Tussel announced a new wireless internet tower had been brought online in the community of Buckman located just north of Fontenoy on County Highway P. The company states their new tower will bring area residents expanded options for high-speed internet service and has the potential to provide service for nearly 700 homes and businesses. Last week, we spoke with Bug Tussel's Executive Director of Public Affairs Scott Feldt as well as Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach to learn more about the project and the opportunities it provides.

Founded in 2003, Bug Tussel states they were "created to provide reliable internet in rural areas often neglected by traditional providers". The company is based in Green Bay and has towers and fiber lines in 40 counties in Wisconsin as well as assets located throughout the Midwest. Currently, they service a total of 300,000 households with a network of over 400 wireless sites and roughly 1,300 miles of fiber. In recent years, Bug Tussel completed over 100 miles of fiber and 9 internet towers across Kewaunee County which is now servicing over 9,300 households.

Bug Tussel's involvement with their current Brown County project began in late 2023. Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach says the county's relationship with Bug Tussel "started out of need" explaining the county government identified they "had issues with residents being able to connect to the world", and noting this was especially evident during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Streckenbach further explains the challenges were especially evident in rural areas and also led to concerns with emergency service connectivity and the transmission of election results from rural municipalities. He says these concerns led to the formation of the Rural Broadband Subcommittee that began to look into ways to address the "internet divide" in Brown County. 

After putting out a Request for Proposal (RFP), representatives from Brown County began meeting with Bug Tussel to review their submission which was ultimately accepted in September of 2023. With this decision, Bug Tussel took over the county's network from the former Brown County Community Access Network. In early 2024, the county approved a $27.2 million loan for Bug Tussel to complete an extensive project delivering high-speed internet service to rural communities across the county.

Bug Tussel's Executive Director of Public Affairs Scott Feldt says the firm chose the project because they are "always looking to our backyard as a place to provide wireless and fiber service", and they are now "working to get as much of Brown County covered as possible". He explains they have been constructing wireless towers throughout the county with fiber lines running to the towers to increase capacity. Bug Tussel plans on having crews working their way counter-clockwise around the county starting in Pittsfield in the northwest throughout 2025 with hopes of having the project completed by the end of the year. Two of their towers serve the greater Denmark area with a site on Park Road going live in 2021 followed by their tower in Buckman which was put online last month.

Streckenbach says Bug Tussel has been an "excellent partner", and the county is "really pleased" with their work. He states "everything is going as planned" and is "on time and on budget". Streckenbach explains Bug Tussel and the county have regular meetings every other week to review progress and address challenges. Feldt says some of the issues they have encountered include weather and scheduling as well as finding the needed manpower to complete everything on time.

When asked what sets Bug Tussel apart, Feldt says it is mainly their focus on rural areas stating, "Farmers today need access to the internet as much as any business," and their services also allow customers to "stay connected at work and at home". Streckenbach says the work being done is "phase one of a much larger project" and there is still "a lot of work left to be done". He likens the project to building a highway with all the interworking and complex factors involved. Streckenbach states he his "hoping Brown County becomes the most connected county in all of Wisconsin".

Anyone interested in learning more about Bug Tussel or if they are able to access their services is encouraged to contact them by calling toll free 877-227-0924 or by visiting their website at btussel.com.