Notice to the Qualified Voters of the Town of Normanna

Two positions will be up for election at the 2012 Annual Town of Normanna Election to be held on March 13, 2012.  Filing dates for the positions are Tuesday, January 3 - to 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 17, 2012.  File by appointment with the Clerk. Please call (218) 626.5162.

Open positions:

One (1) Position of Supervisor for Three (3)-year term

One (1) Position of Clerk-Treasurer for Two (2)-year term

Ellen Hanson

Town of Normanna Clerk-Treasurer

Cloquet Valley Internet Initiative

"Working together to bring high speed internet and more options to our region"

Options available for cell phones, Internet and television service are limited in Normanna Township.  In some areas, cell phone or high-speed Internet service are not available at all.  In other areas, limited services are available from Frontier, Centurylink, Coop Light & Power, Cellular companies and other providers.  In all cases, the demand for Internet services far exceeds the capacity.

As we move into the future, tele-commuting (virtual travel) will provide greater access and be more affordable than physical travel.  In rural areas such as ours, those who want to tele-commute from home aren't able to do so.  Students are missing out on important educational opportunities.  Fire and safety operations will be affected if telecommunications are unreliable.  Access to certain services, such as tele-healthcare aren't possible.  As more services are offered over the Internet, we are being left behind.

Representatives from area townships have been meeting to seek a solution to this problem.  Townships in Cloquet Valley - Alden, Ault, Fairbanks, Gnesen, Normanna, Northstar, Pequaywan, and Unorganized - need to make sure that we not are left out of the planning for high speed Internet access that is going on in Lake County and other areas.

An important component of this effort is demonstrating the interest of area residents - both year round and seasonal - in improving current Internet, phone and television services.  In order to convince providers of Internet access to either initiate service or improve their current level of service, we need to demonstrate potential demand.

A variety of approaches are being investigated, such as national programs that extend broadband to rural areas, participation in new projects like the Lake County Fiber Optic Project, or expansion and improvement by current providers. Those volunteers working on the Cloquet Valley Internet Initiative have been meeting with officials from Lake and St. Louis Counties, and representatives of the Coop Light and Power, among others, to determine what options are available.  The group has secured a grant from the Blandin Foundation for a consultant knowledgeable in this area.

What is the Lake County Fiber Optic Project:

Using funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Utility Service (RUS), Lake County is building a fiber-to-the-home network serving Lake County and a portion of eastern St. Louis County.  Residents in this area will be able to receive new state-of-the-art telecommunication services including ultra-high-speed broadband with video, voice and data services delivered over fiber-optic cable.  The Cloquet Valley Internet Initiative is investigating whether it would be feasible to extend that network to include our area, as one option to increase the Internet service here.

Fiber-to-the-home networks differ from conventional telecommunications services, which are delivered over a copper line (DSL service), copper coaxial cable (cable service) or wireless services (ground based tower or satellite services).  Fiber-optic networks deliver data through strands of fiberglass, using laser technologies that operate at many time the speed of conventional services.  The term Broadband is defined by Rural Utility Service as 3 million bits per second (Mbps).

Resident support and interest are the keys to making anything happen.

Resident support will be required to get a government loan or grant.  No one will pay attention to us unless residents stand up and say...Yes, we want better service.  We want more choices.  We want to take full advantage of all the potential the Internet is offering, whether personal or business related.

In Normanna Township, we will be contacting neighbors to get feedback on their interest and suggestions for how to proceed.  You may be contacted by eMail, in person or by mail.  If you are missed, please email NormannaBb@gmail.com and request an interest survey and to be added to the eMail distribution list.

Please go to http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VZ2P8JQ to enter your survey online.

We will continue to keep you informed.  And, of course, since we are aware of the limited Internet service in this area, we will also be using printed materials to keep residents informed!