By Pepper Fisher
OLYMPIA, Wash. – The Washington State Public Works Board approved over $44.6 million in conditional grants for 15 broadband construction projects in underserved communities across the state, and one of the biggest grants goes to Clallam County at over $4.5 million. Jefferson County PUD got just under $1.1 million.
Large areas of the North Olympic Peninsula lack access to even minimum broadband speeds of 25 megabytes per second, which makes it nearly impossible for students to use the internet for schoolwork, for employees to work from home, or for farmers and small businesses to use new technologies.
The funds awarded are going to be used for a very specific project in the middle of the county, starting at the junction of Hwy 101 and 112 and end extending to the Colville Road/Eden Valley area.
County Commissioner Mark Ozias says this phase of the project is expected to bring broadband access to about 1,600 homes and businesses.
“So in essence, it’s a bit of a patchwork out there. And what we’ve been trying to do is to look for opportunities of need that we can package together in such a way that it makes for a sensible project. And this was one significant geographic region, and a significant number of homes that should end up with access to broadband as a result of this.”
Clallam County Community Broadband Team Project Manager Chelsea Millar says they are hoping to get the project of installing a combination of aerial and underground fiber started in September of next year.
“And I also want to let people know, this is kind of the beginning project for an overall project of reaching through Joyce. So we have applied for a second grant that we just submitted for, and we’ll find out in January that will work its way through Joyce.”
What this project will mean is that the county will, for the time, be entering into the broadband business, similar to CenturyLink and Wave.
“The county will become the owner of fiber in certain areas as a result of this project. So it’s going to be an additional lift for our public works department. And we anticipate working with others out there in the field on a contractual basis to help us with the maintenance and upkeep.”
Visit the North Olympic Development Council website and Washington State Public Works Board webpage for more information.