Schurz Communications is expanding its broadband operations with plans to acquire Winona, Minn.-based Hiawatha Broadband Communications.
Terms for the deal have not been disclosed.
According to the announcement, the company will remain in Winona, operating under the Hiawatha Broadband brand.
“HBC has been an integral part of southeast Minnesota for 20 years, and that’s not going to change,” Schurz Communications President and CEO Todd Schurz comments in a statement. “We plan to continue investing in the business and the employees because we know that our success is at the local level where the day-to-day business will be run. On behalf of Schurz, we want to welcome HBC to our family of companies and look forward to growing together.”
Hiawatha Broadband provides gigabit broadband, telephone, and video service over its fiber optic network to communities in southeast Minnesota. The company offers more than 300 channels, video on demand, as well as HBC Studios-produced coverage of local high school and college sports.
Hiawatha Broadband operates the RS Fiber Cooperative gigabit fiber-to-the farm project in Minnesota, and also connects more than 20 cities in the southern region of the state to a protected fiber optic network ring via its data transport network.
“The board and management of HBC carefully evaluated whether Schurz was the right company to carry forward the true spirit and intent of what the HBC team has worked hard to create in Minnesota,” Hiawatha Broadband CEO Dan Pecarina notes in the statement. “Schurz believes, as we do, that a good company is actively engaged in and cares about the communities they serve. Schurz focuses on employees and customers and believes that local employees making the day-to-day decisions serve the customer best. We’re pleased to join Schurz as they share our vision of not just what HBC is today but also what we believe HBC can be in the future.”
Pending approvals, the deal is expected to close at the end of 2017.
