Rank: 80
Code: Red
(See Blandin Foundation interactive map)
Traverse County: on bottom 10 list for broadband
With a population density of 2.6, Traverse is unlikely to get better service without community engagement. In 2018, they made a deal with a wireless provider; the county helped them to get started and set up. The provider has been successful but the connections available do not meet the 100/20 Mbps or 25/3 Mbps speed goals. But as someone from the county pointed out at the time, it was better than what they had.
Projected allocation of American Recovery Project ARP funds in Traverse is $632,063; broadband is one possible use.
Todd County may benefit from intervention, such as the Blandin Accelerate program, a process to spur community acquisition and deployment of federal and state broadband funds, to find an alternative solution especially with state and federal funding on the horizon. They are a code red community.
Broadband Access:
| 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
| 100/20 (2026 goal) | 50.97 | 50.97 | 49.39 | 45.62 | 45.37 |
| 25/3 (2022 goal) | 67.87 | 67.25 | 67.25 | 66.14 | 45.37 |
| County | Households with computer | …with desktop or laptop | …with ONLY smartphone | …with a tablet et al |
| State of MN | 93.6% | 80.6% | 7.7% | 63.8% |
| Traverse | 87.4 | 71.8 | 8.8 | 53.7 |
Past grants
none
Checklist:
- Find more articles on broadband in Traverse County (http://tinyurl.com/gmvojv8)
- 100/20 Mbps ranking: 80 (down 2)
- Has worked with Blandin: yes
- Has received a MN Broadband grant: no
- Household density: 2.25
Details:
- Districts: CD 7
Senate: 12
House: 12A - Find your reps
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. I’m looking at progress toward the 2022 (25 Mbps down and 3 Mbps up) and 2026 (100 Mbps down and 20 Mbps up) and will code each:
- Red (yikes)
- Yellow (warning)
- Green (good shape)
Blandin on Broadband 