Thomson Township: board discusses sewer repairs, broadband

The emergency sewer repairs that caused a detour on Highway 61 in Thomson Township throughout July have wrapped up, but more sewer problems have been uncovered in another area of the township, leaving some residents upset and concerned.

Thomson resident Joe Davidson brought his concerns to the Thomson township board of supervisors at their meeting July 21, 2022. According to Davidson, he received a letter from the township informing him that his property was in violation of the township's sewer ordinance, and that he and his neighbors would have to foot the bill to fix it.

Davidson explained to the board and other community members in attendance that his house, which was built in the early 1970s, was the first house built on the corner of Flynn Street and Randall Avenue. Davidson's house was connected directly to the main sewer line at that time. As time went on, houses were built on Randall Avenue and connected to the main sewer line by lateral lines connecting to Davidson's line, instead of being connected directly to the main line. Thomson township's sewer ordinance does not allow houses to have more than one lateral line, putting Davidson and the other residents on Randall Avenue in violation.

Joe Jurewicz, the township's engineer, explained that there is no sewer main on Randall Avenue and the use of the lateral connections to the main line on Flynn Street through Davidson's connection was incorrect and potentially done "in the dark" at the time of construction. The township had planned to further inspect the sewer lines on Flynn Street and Randall Avenue this summer and intended to bring forward a project to extend the main line down Randall Avenue. However, with the township's road and utility supervisor resigning last month to accept a new job, the plans were put on hold.

Davidson, along with the other few residents in attendance, were not pleased with that response and wanted the board to take action. The answer from the board was to get the ball rolling on the project and hire someone to begin inspecting and mapping out the sewer lines so a project can be developed.

While this answer was not what the residents were hoping for, the board felt it was the best way to resolve the problem in a timely manner - as this problem was discovered during the process of putting one of the houses up for sale - instead of attempting to alter the sewer ordinance or grant a variance.

The board will continue discussions on the project at future meetings.

Broadband possibilities

In other business, the board voted to support two projects that aim to provide better broadband to township residents.

First, the board decided to send a letter of support for a Border-to-Border broadband state grant application for the Consolidated Telephone Company (CTC) and city of Cloquet that could include more than 90 homes in Thomson Township if approved. This project was presented to the board at their previous meeting. The board also pledged $37,500 if approved. The Cloquet City Council pledged $300,000 toward the project - if approved for a grant - at its July 19 meeting. As proposed, the CTC line would pass 246 homes in northern Cloquet in unserved or underserved areas.

A Mediacom project presented to the board at its July 21 meeting would cover a majority of the northern portion of the township and would include 420 homes. The board voted to send a letter of support to this project as well and to pledge $150,000.

The amounts pledged were determined by the number of homes that the projects would cover. The board wanted to act aggressively in support of the projects by pledging nearly half of their American Rescue Plan Act funds, hoping the community would recognize that they understand how big of a problem broadband is for township residents.

The Thomson Township board of supervisors meets on the first and third Thursday of the month.