Paul Bunyan Communications completed construction expanding one of the fastest rural all-fiber optic networks in the United States, the GigaZone^™, to approximately 590 underserved homes, businesses and community institutions in the areas of Ash River, Black Duck Lake, Elephant Lake, Kabetogama and Morcom townships. These locations now have access to fiber optic fast broadband with speeds up to 10 Gbps, along with voice telephone services. 

Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation supported the projects with $585,914 in Broadband Infrastructure grants to Paul Bunyan Communications. Total project investment was $3,235,447.

The majority of the locations that received new service are in St. Louis County (SLC) and only had access to internet speeds below 10 Mbps. SLC is Minnesota’s largest at over 6,200 square miles in size and has the highest number of unserved households in the state.

“This project helped to decrease the number of unserved locations in St. Louis County by nearly 600 and gave them access to the fastest internet speeds available, both upload and download speeds up to 10 Gig,” said Steve Howard, Paul Bunyan Communications’ IT & development manager. “This is a huge service improvement for everyone in the project area and is a game changer for the residents and businesses. In addition to the 590 locations passed, Paul Bunyan Communications was able to leverage the fiber installed for this project to provide services to mobile phone towers. This expanded mobile phone coverage and greatly improved emergency communications throughout the area.”

The GigaZone^™ not only provides the capacity to handle current communication technologies quickly and efficiently, but it will also meet the increasing demands of the next generation of broadband innovations. For example, initially the network provided a maximum speed of 1 Gigabit per second, but the technology advanced by 2021 so the cooperative can now offer speeds up to 10 Gigabits per second.

“We were one of the first rural areas of northern Minnesota, not directly connected to a city, to be awarded a rural broadband grant,” said Sasha Lehto, Morcom Township clerk. “The new high-speed broadband enables our residents to work where they play and allows our kids to do their homework from home. For me personally, as a county social worker and township clerk, I can better do what is required in my roles and better serve people. I give our late Senator David Tomassoni and Paul Bunyan Communications a lot of credit for their assistance in making this possible.”

Paul Bunyan Communications started as a telephone cooperative in 1952 and has grown into the largest broadband cooperative in Minnesota serving over 6,000 square miles throughout most of Beltrami County and portions of Cass, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching and St. Louis counties. In addition to fiber optic fast internet speeds up to 10 Gig powered by the GigaZone^™, the cooperative offers television services, digital voice services, residential and business IT services and is also the home of northern Minnesota’s certified Apple Service Centers in Bemidji and Grand Rapids.

Other project partners included the State of Minnesota’s Border to Border Broadband grant, Morcom Township and Paul Bunyan Communications.

Email Whitney Ridlon for Broadband Infrastructure grant information or call her at 218-735-3004.

Goodland Township installed a new high efficiency HVAC and filtration system in its community center, replacing the original outdated and aging system that dates back to 1990 and the building’s original construction. Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation supported the project with a $20,000 Community Infrastructure grant. Total project investment was $68,880.

The project involved the replacement of three forced air propane furnaces, three air conditioning units, exhaust fans and dropped ceiling. New equipment in its place included air source heat pumps, an ultraviolet purifier, ductwork and a new ceiling.

“After numerous repairs to the old system, our board determined that a high efficiency HVAC system with newer technology was needed,” said Charles Miller, township chairperson. “We anticipate the new system will lower our energy use and costs, as well as eliminate the costly repairs to an aging system.”

Goodland Township is located in southeast Itasca County and has twice the geographic area than most townships at 12 miles long and six miles wide. The community center is a focal point of the township and serves as a rental venue for private functions such as wedding and funeral receptions. It is utilized as a senior center, community gathering space and election polling site. Residents from Goodland, Warba, Sago and Floodwood Lake use the facility. Future plans include preparing the center to serve as a regional disaster relief facility.

The Goodland Township fire hall is attached to the community center. The fire hall was expanded in 2019. The Goodland Volunteer Fire Department provides fire protection, first response medical and rescue operations to Goodland, Warba, Feely, Wawina, Cedar Valley Township and areas of Floodwood. The volunteer firefighters provide medical treatment for accidents that occur on highways and snowmobile and ATV trails. Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation supported the 2019 expansion project with a $150,000 Community Infrastructure grant.

Email Chris Ismil or call him at 218-735-3010 for more information about Community Infrastructure grants.

The Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids hosted a four-day 100th birthday celebration this past summer to honor the famous 20th century performing artist who was born in Grand Rapids on June 10, 1922. Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation supported the project with a $5,000 Culture & Tourism grant that helped pay for event marketing including newspaper, radio, social media, banners, postcards, fliers and a live radio broadcast. Total project investment was $10,000.

The museum was founded in 1975 and is part of Grand Rapids’ tourism economy and culture. The museum is located in Garland’s restored birthplace home and provides a gallery of educational exhibits showcasing her life and legacy. The 19th-century white-clapboard house and museum are located adjacent to the Children’s Discovery Center Museum providing visitors access to a variety of hands-on, interactive exhibits, activities and indoor and outdoor play areas.

The four-day celebration attracted over 450 people and included movie showings, meet and greets, guided museum tours, Dash for the Ruby Slippers 5K run/walk, “Easter Parade” high tea party, a fundraising dinner, local food vendors, live music entertainment and an outdoor showing of “The Wizard of Oz” on a huge jumbo screen.

“What struck me most over the four-day celebration was how Judy’s life and art still impacts people,” said Janie Hietz, Judy Garland Museum’s executive director. “During the event people came dressed as the movie’s main character Dorothy and sang “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” on our outdoor stage. Judy passed away many years before some of the younger people were even born, which is a testament to how her life’s work is meaningful to people of all ages.”

Garland was born Frances Ethel Gumm and had two older sisters. Her family ran a movie theater in Grand Rapids, and she performed song and dance with her sisters and mother. The Gumm family moved to California in 1926. She had a career in the film, theatre and music industry until she passed away in 1969 at age 47. According to Hietz, Garland publicly recalled that her fondest childhood memories were those made in Grand Rapids.

Other birthday celebration project partners included Grand Rapids Community Foundation, John Oliver Foundation and Lake Country Power. Email Danae Beaudette for Culture & Tourism grant information or call her at 218-735-3022.

The dual-museum site has approximately 500 members and is open to the public and area school field trips. Learn more about the Judy Garland Museum and hours of operation.

The city of Crosby installed an outdoor speaker system on light fixtures along main street to play holiday and special event music and broadcast emergency announcements. The sound project coincided with the reconstruction of Highway 210 and sidewalks through Crosby’s business district. Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation supported the project with a $16,500 Downtown Streetscapes grant to Cuyuna Lakes Chamber of Commerce. Total project investment was $33,000.

The chamber also partnered with the Cuyuna Range Garden Club to install large planters on each main street corner along Highway 210.

“The Music on Main sound system has greatly enhanced the experience of being in downtown Crosby, providing a great atmosphere for shoppers and information for our visitors through music and announcements,” said Aubrey Koop, chamber director. “Our visitors for such events as Music in the Park, Heritage Days, Cuyuna Christmas and Cuyuna Crusher, along with our guests that visit to shop local in Cuyuna have all enjoyed this wonderful addition to Crosby.”

Other project partners included Cuyuna Range Garden Club, Minnesota Department of Transportation and Stewart Sound Systems.

Beginning July 1, the Downtown Streetscapes grant merged with the Culture & Tourism grant and has a fiscal year budget of $600,000. Email Danae Beaudette or call her at 218-735-3022 for Culture & Tourism grant information.

Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation’s grants are funded through taxes paid by Minnesota’s mining industry.

Arts, culture, history, tourism and recreational activities are essential to the quality of life and economy of our region. Fourteen projects were recently awarded Culture & Tourism grants.

• City of Hibbing: $30,000 to construct six pickleball courts in Bennett Park.
• Ely’s Historic State Theatre: $12,210 to market and advertise the End of the Road Film Festival.
• Itasca Ski & Outing: $30,000 to purchase a winch cat grooming machine for the ski jumping venue.
• Township of Lutsen: $14,770 to rehabilitate an unused community ballpark into a new community park with field refurbishment and the addition of picnic tables, gazebo, grills, historical marker, lighting, soccer nets and a dog park.
• City of Gilbert: $11,975 to replace the doors on the community arena and to construct and buy equipment for a disc golf course in Hopkins Park.
• Grand Marais Art Colony: $7,500 to design and install way finding signage and a lit enclosed informational kiosk.
• Mesabi Community Orchestra: $10,000 to market and advertise the Goodman Auditorium farewell concert at Virginia High School.
• Judy Garland Children’s Museum: $30,000 to make improvements to the exterior and interior of Judy Garland’s birthplace home including repairs and/or replacement to the storm windows, siding, roof and kitchen ceiling.
• Friends of the Parks: $24,999 to pave the parking lot at the newly developed community park that includes an area to honor the branches of the United States Military and veterans.
• City of Tower: $29,550 to replace the roof and make improvements to the historic ticket office at the Train Depot Museum.
• Minnesota Clay Target Sports Education & Training Center: $19,622 to replace the windows, doors and siding on the clubhouse exterior.
• Town of Fayal: $24,000 to construct a picnic shelter and skate shack at the playground, hockey rink and tennis court area.
• Tower Soudan Historical Society: $30,000 to install ADA restrooms and develop a new website for the historic fire hall.
• Tourist Center Senior Citizens: $15,000 to renovate the center’s kitchen which is used for senior events, meetings, educational classes and community celebrations.

Does your community have a project that improves the region’s arts, culture or recreation? Email Danae Beaudette for Culture & Tourism grant information or call her at 218-735-3022.

Learn more about Culture & Tourism grants.

The Greater Minnesota Government Procurement Fair will be held on Tuesday, Oct. 25 at Grand Casino Mille Lacs in Onamia. This 18th annual event, which focuses on selling products and services to the government, runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Small businesses interested in doing business with government agencies and prime contractors are encouraged to attend.

The fair will provide an opportunity for small businesses to learn about special programs designed to provide better access to the government marketplace. A trade show will be open throughout the day.

A variety of workshops, including Basics of Selling to the Government, HUBZone Certification and Cybersecurity, will be offered. There are eight workshops in two tracks from which to choose. There also will be an opportunity to visit with more than 20 representatives from state and federal government agencies, large businesses and resource providers. Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation is an exhibitor at the event.

The procurement fair is free and open to all businesses, but registration is required.

Register for the procurement fair.