Eastsound gets a broadband upgrade, Friday Harbor is next on the list
Published 12:26 pm Tuesday, January 12, 2016
By Leslie Kelly
Special to the Journal
Living on an island has its advantages. But sometimes there are disadvantages, and internet connection and speed are among them. Rock Island Communications, a division of Orcas Power and Light Cooperative, however, has plans to deal with that. Rock Island Communication is bringing fiber optic internet to the islands, which will allow businesses and residents to have high speed internet, according to Dan Burke, spokesman for Rock Island Communications.
“People who don’t live on an island don’t understand what it’s like to not have high speed internet available when you need it or want it,” Burke said. “So the county, OPALCO and Rock Island Communications have made this a priority for island residents and business owners.”
It’s a real task to bring internet to rural areas, and in cases like the islands, where the population isn’t large, companies like Comcast find that it’s not worth the investment, he said. Thus, OPALCO committed to making it happen and set aside $4.5 million to help fund the project.
Currently, Rock Island is working with businesses in the Eastsound area of Orcas Island, hoping to get enough of them interested so that the fiber optic network can be laid. As Burke explained, fiber optic is the platinum standard of telecommunications service.
Fiber optic allows communication to move at the speed of light, and the name itself refers to tiny strains of glass fiber that are bundled together in cables.
These fibers transmit light pulses which allow communication data to be transmitted and read. Eastsound is the pilot project for the broader plan of bringing broadband to the islands. According to Burke, Friday Harbor presents more of a challenge to Rock Island because of a longer tourism season, more developed terrain and there are more than 100 businesses that potentially will need work.
“We can’t afford to make mistakes,” said Burke. To bring broadband to Friday Harbor, Rock Island staff will be working on areas dependent on business and traffic. The terrain of busy streets and sidewalks that will require jackhammers will be more difficult when it comes to the installation. That is what they plan on working on Friday Harbor in the winter months when tourism is low. But Burke makes it clear that getting broadband to Friday Harbor is high on their list.
“All of this is in an effort to serve everybody right,” he said. There are businesses in town currently connected from pre-existing fiber optic and Rock Island has upgraded and extended those connections to buildings where possible.
“We’ve done what we can,” he said. “We just need our ducks in a row to move forward.” In the project Rock Island is offering to Orcas, the internet connection speed is 100 times faster than the basic DSL offered in the county today, Burke said.
The cables will be buried 18 inches deep and every home or business that signs on will get a dedicated strain. In order to make the system affordable to the approximately 15,000 residents of the San Juan Islands, Rock Island is suggesting that neighbors ban together and share in the costs.
Burke said typical construction costs are from $1,500 to $6,000 depending on the density, topography and distance to the “backbone” which is the main source of the fiber optic network. In most cases, he said there will be a middle and a last mile that will need to be placed. The middle mile brings the service from the backbone to the street. The last mile brings the service from the street to individual businesses or homes.
“In most cases, the cost of that is about $2,500 for each step,” Burke said. “Or about $5,000 to get connected.” But he said that pays off in that property values are expected to increase about 3.1 percent with the high speed internet connection.
So for the typical island home valued at $425,000, the increase in value is $12,000 to $13,000 or double what the investment is. And to help with the cost, Rock Island has an incentive of $1,500 per home investment toward the overall building cost. This can be applied to either the middle mile or the last mile costs.
The company suggests getting the neighborhood to come together and commit to the middle mile and then applying the $1,500 to each individual home that is participating for the last mile connection. Participants can also decide to get a $20 a month discount to their services, rather than a lump sum. But, Burke said, this is only available if each property owner signs on now, not at a later date. He also said Islanders Bank has created a loan program to help local residents afford the start up costs. Burke stressed how important it is for business owners to be a part of the program.
“What’s happening right now is that we’re working in the Eastsound area and we need at least 30 businesses to say ‘Yes,’” he said. “Once that happens, the project can get underway and service would be available within the year.”
Mary Clure, president of the Orcas Island Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber has endorsed the project. “This is such an opportunity,” Clure said. “It’s being subsidized to keep the cost down and it’s so important for businesses to get connected.”
If the project is successful in Eastsound, then the business district of Friday Harbor will be next, followed by Lopez Island. “It’s easy for people to say that we’ve chosen to live on an island and just have to deal with slow internet,” Burke said. “But we have many important businesses and even home businesses that operate here. We contribute to the economy and we need to have the best possible service we can.”
And, he added, with high speed internet emergency communications in the event of a disaster or accidents will improve greatly. Burke said he’s available to answer questions at 360- 375-7050. For more go to www. rockisland.com. Cali Bagby contributed to this piece.
