Jefferson and Clallam counties on Wednesday were awarded a total of $6.5 million in federal economic stimulus grant money that will ultimately bring high-speed broadband Internet to every corner of the North Olympic Peninsula.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, former Washington governor, made the announcement at a Seattle news conference Wednesday morning, which was attended by Katherine Baril, Washington State University Port Hadlock extension executive director who oversees the Jefferson County’s Team Jefferson economic development council.
“We are very excited. This is really big news,” Baril said of Jefferson County’s $3.2 million share of the grant that a consortium of about 20 government and private partners applied for in April.
“We know how hard it is to grow jobs and businesses without infrastructure,” she said.
“For our grandfathers, that was the phone. For our parents, it was the train and interstate highway.
“But today, the most important things we could do to create new jobs was bring the Internet,” Baril said.
For Jefferson County, Baril said the grant will fund the “middle mile,” where private companies were unwilling or unable to provide service.
“Similar to how this region funded Bonneville Power or the Interstate Highway, this project funds the [broadband fiber] backbone and makes it more feasible for private companies to step forward, tap the system and install the final mile to individual homes and businesses,” Baril said.
Baril said Northwest Open Access Network — or NoaNet — will work with Team Jefferson over the next year to design a high-speed loop to serve Jefferson County anchor institutions, including fire stations, community centers, schools and hospitals.
Once the hubs are installed they are virtually located where they can be accessed by local businesses and households to support new small business start up and job creation.
Jefferson County will be the first to receive connection and will include all the libraries, schools, community centers, fire and emergency management programs, Jefferson Healthcare hospital, WSU and city of Port Townsend, county and Port of Port Townsend.
Once hubs are installed with broadband access, then services can be expanded to businesses and households.
Also on Wednesday, NoaNet announced that it had received an additional federal grant award of more than $3 million to extend open access high-speed broadband service targeting public health, safety providers and low-income individuals in particular in the city of Port Angeles.
The benefits of this broadband initiative are far-reaching, said Fred Mitchell, manager of power supply and utility services for Clallam County Public Utility District and NoaNet board president.
He said the benefits include job creation, economic investment in rural areas and high-speed Internet access to northwest Washington schools, libraries, emergency responders, hospitals, government agencies, businesses and low-income people.
“Imagine a rural doctor in Forks consulting and sharing test results instantaneously with specialists at any major medical center in the world,” Mitchell said.
“This is a game-changer for Olympic Peninsula communities.”
The Peninsula is part of a broader effort involving $45 million in participant contributions and nearly $140 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act federal grants to construct more than 1,300 miles of new fiber optic cable for wholesale broadband service to 55 communities across 25 Washington state counties.
Besides public entities in Jefferson County, Baril said the grant also will lead to wireless connections, once a broadband fiber cable is laid from Brinnon to Port Townsend.
Jefferson County Public Utility District, a founding member of NoaNet, supported the grant application, with Team Jefferson organized a public partnership.
Work in both counties is expected to begin some time in 2011 after environmental assessment, engineering and design, and bidding and awarding contracts either to public or private contractors.
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-681-2391 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.
