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Pine Island Sentiment Survey 2026

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Frequently Asked Questions

About This Survey

What is this survey?
This is a community sentiment survey designed to capture the range of opinions Pine Island city and township residents hold about the proposed hyperscale data center. It is not an official city election or referendum. Its purpose is to give residents a structured, documented way to weigh in, and to give City Council a clear, verified picture of where the community stands.

Who is running this survey?
This survey is administered independently by E. Susanne Blazek, PhD, a Pine Island township resident acting as a private citizen. It is not sponsored by the City of Pine Island, any political party, any business, or any advocacy group for or against the data center.

Is this an official city vote?
No. This is a community sentiment survey and carries no legal or binding authority. The results will be compiled and submitted to Pine Island City Council as an open letter representing community voices, but they do not obligate the Council to any particular decision.

Why is this survey being conducted?
Decisions about large-scale development affect the whole community. This survey gives every resident and township resident a convenient, documented way to go on record — whether in favor, opposed, or undecided — and to share their reasoning directly with the people who represent them.

Who paid for this survey?
This survey was funded out of pocket by E. Susanne Blazek, PhD and Joe Blazek. No business, PAC, advocacy organization, or outside group contributed to or directed its design or administration.

Who Can Participate?

Who is eligible to take this survey?
Any current resident of the City of Pine Island or Pine Island Township is eligible. This includes renters and property owners alike. You do not need to be a registered voter to participate, but your name and address must match a verifiable public record (voter registration file or county property/parcel record) to be counted in the verified results.

Can I participate if I'm not a registered voter?
Yes. Voter registration is not required. Your address will be cross-referenced against Goodhue County public records (including the county parcel/property database) to confirm you live in the city or township. If your name and address appear in any county public record for this area, your response will be counted.

Can township residents participate?
Yes. Pine Island Township residents are explicitly included. If you have a rural route address in Pine Island Township, your response is welcome.

Can I take the survey if I own property in Pine Island but don’t live there?
No. This survey is intended to capture the views of people who live here. Property ownership alone does not qualify you to participate.

Can businesses vote?
No. This survey is for individual residents only.

My spouse and I are both residents. Can we each submit a response?
Yes. Each adult resident at your address may submit their own individual response. Responses will be deduplicated by name, so each person should use their own name when submitting.

Privacy and Your Data

What information do you collect, and why?
The survey collects your first name, last name, and street address. This information is used solely to verify that you are a Pine Island city or township resident and to deduplicate responses. It will not be sold, shared with any third party, or used for any purpose other than administering this survey.

Will my vote (yes or no) be made public?
No. Only aggregate results will be published publicly. For example, “68% of verified respondents gave answer X” or “1,247 verified residents responded.” Individual votes will not be published or attributed to any named person.

Will my name appear in the City Council open letter?
The open letter will present aggregate results and a compilation of residents’ written messages. If you submitted a message for City Council (Question 3), your name will be attached to that message unless you checked the box requesting anonymity, in which case your message will appear without your name.

Who will read my feedback about this survey (Question 4)?
Only E. Susanne Blazek, PhD. Survey administration feedback is not shared, published, or included in any public-facing document.

How are my data stored?
Responses are stored in a password-protected Qualtrics account accessible only to E. Susanne Blazek, PhD. The data will be retained through the duration of this survey and the City Council submission process. The raw survey data will then be archived securely on a password-protected device (not in the cloud), and then deleted after two years.

Verification

How do you verify that I’m actually a Pine Island resident?
After the survey closes, your submitted name and address will be compared against publicly available records: the Goodhue County voter registration file and/or the Goodhue County parcel/property database. These are public records available to any resident under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act (MGDPA). If your name and address match a record in either database, your response is counted as verified.

What if my name or address doesn't match perfectly?
Typos happen. If there’s a close but imperfect match (e.g., “St.” vs. “Street,” or a minor name spelling variation), it will be reviewed individually. When in doubt, the benefit of the doubt goes to the respondent, and the discrepancy will be noted in a verification log.

What if I’m a new resident and not yet in the county records?
If your name and address don’t appear in available public records, for example, if you moved here very recently, your response will be flagged as unverified rather than discarded. Unverified responses will be reported separately in the results (e.g., “X additional responses could not be verified against public records”). If you believe this may apply to you and want to provide supporting documentation, contact E. Susanne Blazek, PhD directly at esblazek@outlook.com.

What happens to responses from people outside Pine Island?
They are filtered out before the verified count is calculated. Unverified responses will not be included in results submitted to the City Council. They may be noted in a transparency summary as evidence that the verification process was used.

How do you prevent people from submitting more than once?
Several layers are used: the survey platform limits one response per account, duplicate names and addresses in the results are deduplicated during the verification process, and the post-close verification review flags any suspicious patterns. Because verification is done manually against public records, ballot stuffing would require fabricating identities that match county records, which is not a realistic concern in a community of our size.

The Results

Where can I see the results?
Live results (aggregate counts only) are posted at [website URL] and updated automatically as responses come in. Final verified results will be published at the same location after the survey closes and the verification process is complete.

When will final verified results be available?
Approximately one week after the survey closes on Monday, August 31. The verification process takes time to do carefully.

What will you do with the results?
The verified results and a compilation of residents’ City Council messages will be submitted to the Pine Island City Council as an open letter signed by E. Susanne Blazek on behalf of participating residents. The letter will be a public document. Results will also remain posted on this website as a community record.

Will the City Council be required to act on these results?
No. This survey is advisory, not binding. City Council members are elected representatives who make their own decisions. The goal is to ensure they have a clear, documented, and verified record of community sentiment.

What if the results are close?
The results will be reported accurately regardless of how they come out. A close result is itself meaningful information for the City Council and the community.

Technical Questions

I don't have a smartphone or computer. Can I still participate?
Yes. A survey invitation has been sent in the mail to everyone in Pine Island and in the Pine Island Township. You can return the postcard in the mail with your responses. Also, the Pine Island Public Library has computers available for public use. Library staff can assist if you need help accessing the survey. You may also ask a household member to assist you in submitting your individual response. Just make sure the name and address entered are yours.

The QR code on my flier isn't working. What's the direct link?
Go to: www.tinyurl.com/pineislandsurvey

I submitted my response but I made an error. Can I change it?
If you submitted under your correct name and address but made an error in your answers, email E. Susanne Blazek at esblazek@outlook.com within 48 hours of submitting. Include your name and address so she can locate your response. Requests to change a submitted vote will be handled on a case-by-case basis and logged for transparency.

I'm having trouble submitting. Who can I contact?
Email E. Susanne Blazek at esblazek@outlook.com or call/text 612-695-9595. She will do her best to help you submit your response before the survey closes.

About the Data Center Proposal

What is a hyperscale data center?
A hyperscale data center is a very large facility, typically hundreds of thousands of square feet, that houses the computing infrastructure used by major technology companies for cloud services, artificial intelligence, streaming, and other digital operations. They typically require significant amounts of land, electrical power, and water for cooling. In Pine Island, the proposed hyperscale data center, called Project Skyway, is approximately 482 acres.

Who is proposing the hyperscale data center, and where would it be located?
Project Skyway refers to an area encompassing approximately 482 acres located to the NE, partially in the City of Pine Island and Pine Island Township. Ryan Companies US, Inc. is a developer working with the city to prepare the land for future development.
Details about the proposal are available from the City of Pine Island. Contact City Hall at 507-356-4591 or visit https://pineislandmn.gov/skyway

This survey doesn't tell me enough about the hyperscale data center called Project Skyway. Where can I learn more?
For official information about the proposed development, contact Pine Island City Hall or attend a City Council meeting. Meeting dates and agendas are posted at https://pineislandmn.gov/meetings. The survey is intentionally designed to be neutral and does not advocate for or against the project.

I have a question not answered here.
Contact E. Susanne Blazek at esblazek@outlook.com. You may also use Question 4 in the survey itself to leave feedback about the survey.

This FAQ will be updated if material changes are made to the survey design or process.
Last updated: July 14, 2026.

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