I am doing the annual look at broadband in each county – based on maps from the Office of Broadband Development and news gathered from the last year.
Itasca’s broadband ranking has slipped from 21 to 23. Itasca has seen increases in access over the last few years and the improvement continues. In November (2017), Paul Bunyan was awarded Minnesota Broadband Grant for portions of Itasca County, St. Louis County, and Hubbard County. That will help.
They did have Senator Smith come to talk about broadband back in March (2018).
Info on Access:
| Speeds | % served 2017 | % served 2018 |
| 25/3 | 78.92 | 86.15 |
| 100/20 | 76.35 | 79.44 |
The speeds reflect the Minnesota speed goals:
- 25 Mbps down and 3 up by 2022
- 100 Mbps down and 20 up by 2026
Current ranking for 100/20 access: 23
- Itasca County has worked with the Blandin Foundation
- Find more articles on broadband in Itasca County. (http://tinyurl.com/grujo6t)
- There is a matrix of Minnesota broadband adoption projects; it includes projects from this area.
- Districts: CD 8
Senate: 5, 6
House: 5A, 5B, 6A