Got gigabit? The vast majority of Minnesotans cannot get home Internet connections with speeds of 1 gigabit per second — about 100 times faster than a standard broadband hookup. At least, they cannot do so easily and affordably.

But the residents of Melrose, Minn., about 100 miles northwest of the Twin Cities, will get gigabit Internet connections with a call, beginning this week.

The city of about 4,000 is declaring itself the state’s first “gigabit city.”

This is in response to a January challenge by Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski for at least one gigabit city to emerge in each U.S. state by 2015.

All Melrose residents have gigabit capability courtesy of fiber-optic networking that links directly to every home, said Mark Birkholz, director of southern markets for broadband provider Arvig.

This compares with about 10 percent of U.S. homes with direct fiber access, he noted.

Not every Melrose resident will want gigabit service, to be sure, and achieving that speed is not simple. Realistically, Arvig can offer about 890 megabits per second consistently, Birkholz said.

Even so, this places Melrose ahead of most Minnesota cities and makes it a prime location for technology startups and other Internet-ravenous companies.

“We’re reaching out to entrepreneurs,” said Birkholz.

He describes Melrose as “gig central” because of the city’s geographical location close to the center of the state and because speedy, reliable Internet access is central to people’s lives.

Arvig’s gigabit service costs $300 a month, while 100-megabit service runs $200 a month. Those wanting conventional 20-megabit service pay $20 a month.

Arvig’s Internet service is comparable in performance but not in cost to the Google Fiber service available in Kansas City, with Austin, Texas, and Provo, Utah, getting on board soon. Google charges $70 a month for 1-gigabit service.

Arvig provides Internet, television, telephone and security services in 73 Minnesota cities — from Moorhead and Detroit Lakes in the north to Kimball, south of St. Cloud. All told, it serves 65,000 people covering 9,000 square miles.

The company also is responsible for broadband access at 33 Rochester, Minn., schools and a high school in St. Cloud, among other specialized customers.

With fiber recently installed in the seven-county Twin Cities metropolitan area, Arvig aspires to offer its services in the metro before long.