presented to the Blandin Foundation broadband team

1. Strut Your Stuff Tour
 Aitkin County Iron Range Broadband Community
(IRBC)
 Other – what has happened since
 Review and Discussion of Round I & II projects
 PC’s for People Distribution
 Thank You Blandin Foundation and IRRRB

2. Other
 SCI bringing Fiber Optic line into Palisade, starting
this month, 110 homes and businesses, privately
funded, completed summer of 2018.
 Lisa Kruse, $5,000.00 cohort grant working with
McGregor Chamber of Commerce who has hired Red
House Media for community marketing, including a
Landing Page
 The Butler Project is researching Co-Work space for
the Butler Building.

3. Long Distance Learning
 Kari Paulsen, Aitkin Workforce Center
 Lisa Kruse, McGregor Community Education
 Sue Kaslow Hill City Community Education
 $13,067.03 grant per site, $6,689.00 match.

4. ECRL Mobile WiFi
 14 units for checkout at Aitkin and McGregor
Libraries and East Central Regional Library (ECRL)
Outreach locations in Aitkin County.
 IRBC grant $4,530.00 match $1,250.00

5. Aitkin HS, Wifi enabled Busses
 4 portable units moved among busses that travel
farthest, sporting and other events or longest daily
bus ride.
 IRBC grant $4,987.00 local match $1,950.00.

6. AHS bus with WiFi Unit

7. WiFi, Increased bandwidth at Long Lake
Conservation Center
 Eliminate Wifi dead spots throughout Campus.
 Increase bandwidth, issue wasn’t equipment.
 IRBC Grant $2,496.00 match $624.00.
 “We are all hooked up with Exede, and it has been
working great! Zero outages.

8. WiFi at Berglund Park
 Continuation of previous project to provide WiFi in
Palisade, Berglund Park was not in coverage range.
 IRBC Grant $4,600.00 match $1,320.00.
 First grant award for Palisade and Hill City,
$8,887.00 match of $2,963.00.
 Concentrating on Palisade, line of sight issues in Hill
City, Hill City Park.

9. Administrative
 IRBC grant of $1,000.00
 Getting and Keeping Good Talent, work shop
 Program to utilize the Conference Centers in Aitkin,
Hill City and McGregor.

10. Aitkin County Landing Page
 IRBC Grant $6,000.00 match was $2,000.00

11. PC’s for People
 82 computers distributed, could have given out more
 Aitkin County HHS 10
 Aitkin County C.A.R.E. 12
 McGregor ANGELS 6
 Aitkin Co Habitat for Humanity 1
 City of Palisade reading room 2
 McGregor Community Ed and Community 15
 A.A.D.A. 6
 Hill City Community Ed 5
 Jaques Art Center 2
 Aitkin County D.A.C. 2
 McGregor Kids Plus 1
 McGregor Historical Society 1
 Individuals 19

12. Thank You Blandin & IRRRB
 Community Listening Session February 2017
 Attendees from all of Aitkin County came and gave
input.
 Overwhelmingly asked for more access to
broadband.
 Total projects $101,874.09, IRBC grants
$76,845.09, local matches $25,029.00.