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Page — Shelton-Mason Journal - Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023
Broadband comes to west side of Hood Canal
By Gordon Weeks
gordon @masoncounty. com
Mason PUD 1 and Hood
Canal Communications have
partnered to provide broad—
band service to customers
on the west side of the Hood
Canal from near the Hamma
Hamma River to Brinnon.
The Hood Canal—101
Broadband Project affects
117 residents and business—
es who have not had access
to broadband services, even
with cellular devices. The
only options have been satel-
lite or Verizon.
The Hood Canal—101
Broadband Project was made
possible when the Commu-
nity Economic Revitalization
Board in September 2021
approved a $797,040 grant
from the Coronavirus Capital
Projects Fund to Mason PUD
1. The project created about
4 miles of fiber along US.
Highway 101 that includes
Eldon, Beacon Point, Triton
Point and Brinnon. Hood Ca-
nal Telephone Co. is the in-
ternet service provider. The
CERB money was matched by
$199,260 in local money.
At a ribbon~cutting cer—
emony Friday, Mason PUD
1 General Manager Kristin
Masteller described the proj—
ect as “a huge public/private
partnership.” She thanked
CERB and Mason County
Commissioner Kevin Shutty
,5»,
a
Mason PUD 1 General Manager Kristin Masteller, center, on Friday cuts a
ribbon celebrat-
ing the partnership between Mason PUD 1 and Hood Canal Communications to
provide
broadband service to customers on the west side of the Hood Canal from near
the Ham-
ma Hamma River to Brinnon. Journal photo by Gordon Weeks
for the commission’s help get-
ting funding, and also praised
the efforts of community
partners that include Jeffer—
son County PUD and Mason
PUD 3.
This is the first time PUD
1 has been involved in provid—
ing broadband service, Mas-
teller said.
Mike Oblizalo, general
manager and Vice president
of Hood Canal Communi—
cations, also spoke at the
ceremony.
“We’ve heard it, the inter-
net is not a luxury anymore
— you need it,” he said.
In a fact sheet, Mason
PUD 1 states, “There are cur-
rently no public medical clin-
ics or hospitals in the project
area. It is critical for resi—
dents to be able to access both
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emergency and preventative
care without having to leave
their homes. The expansion of
broadband to this area would
give residents easier access
to all emergency services, al-
lows offices to expand to new
locations, and greatly shorten
response times There are
currently no major employ-
ers in the area due to lack of
broadband.”
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Friday’s ribbon-cutting
Ceremony took place on the
Beacon Point property of Jim
Boldt, the inaugural custom-
er. He was the first customer
who was connected as a test
run to test the new network
before Hood Canal Commu»
nications started connecting
others. Mason PUD 1 points
out Boldt is well acquainted
with public utilities he
ran the Washington PUD As-
sociation and consulted with
PUDs in communications and
government relations. Boldt
and his neighbors started
the West Canal Community
Broadband Group, and for
more than a decade lobbied
public and private sector util-
ity providers to develop a plan
to serve residents in the area.
In a newsletter to custom-
ers, Masteller wrote that the
grant money from Hood Canal
Communications “couldn’t
reach all of our customers
this first round. I also know
there are a lot of communi-
ties that are still waiting for
access and even more custom-
ers that have questions about
where HCC is serving and
when.” She recommended
people check out the website
at www.hcc.net and call their
office about buildout plans.”
Mason PUD 1 will continue
to work on grant applica~
tions and buildout plans,.she
wrote.