Fiber Construction Underway in Olympic Corridor

Fiber construction is now fully underway for the combined Olympic Fiber Corridor and Inbetweens projects. Many miles of fiber are being installed in all parts of Quilcene, as well as parts of Chimacum and Discovery Bay. Work in Gardiner will begin in the next few weeks.

Because this is a massive $20M+ project, there are a lot of different crews in the field. Our PUD line crews are placing fiber on the poles. We have contracted with North Sky Communications to put fiber in the ground. They have multiple subcontractors out in the field to dig, plow, bore, and trench. Sometimes in the road, sometimes along side, sometimes under it. As well as across the lawn, yard, or woods to get to the home.

On top of this we have an engineering contractor (Finley Engineering) inspecting the work. Oh and our meter team is out in the field locating electric lines before the digging begins. So are crews for any lines owned by CenturyLink or Astound.

If any or all of these crews have been in your neighborhood, you know it gets busy, fast. So far we have visited most areas south of Hwy 104 to install mainline fiber. In some areas, mainly East Quilcene, we have begun installing fiber to the home. 10 customers already have service. By the end of June it should be over 100. By the end of this year it will be over 1000.

Mainline and Drop Fiber

As of this week we are moving north of Lake Leland and north of Eaglemount with mainline construction. Mainline construction means any fiber installed down the street. Mainline fiber is installed on state highways, county roads, and even private drives.

Drop fiber is the fiber that goes from the road to the home. Drop fiber is mainly underway in the southern section of Quilcene. Drop contractors will attempt to call before installing the fiber on the property. You do not need to be home when they install the fiber, but it is advised to coordinate with them to avoid any areas that they should not dig through.

That said, the drop contractors generally know what to look for. Their default path will be the shortest uninterrupted path from the fiber on the street to the nearest corner of the home. If possible, we prefer to bring the fiber to the house at the same spot that the electric meter or phone line comes in.

Once drops are completed in a given area, we will reach out to make an appointment to do the installation inside the home. We do need someone present while our Network Techs bring the fiber inside and activate the service. Learn more about monthly internet service options here. Please note that service is available from the PUD directly or one of our Qualified ISPs.

Couple more things to know:

If red paint shows up on your road or in your yard, its because we marked the electric service. Orange is for phone or cable. Water is blue. White paint marks where the contractor intends to work.

While the locators do their best, some lines get missed and then damaged. Some lines appear that no one would have ever known to look for. However, any utilities that are damaged by the contractor will be repaired immediately.

Our contractors will do there best to restore any roads or properties that are affected by construction. We cannot guarantee that roads or sites will be restored to everyone’s specification.

Though in some areas the drop contractors will follow soon after the mainline construction, in other areas there may be a one to two month gap. Same with in-home install.

Call our email us right away if you have an issue. broadband@jeffpud.org or 360 379 5823.

If you have not done so already (and many of you have) please submit a fiber installation agreement: https://www.jeffpud.org/fiber-install-agreement/.

You can also contact us with any special instructions you may have for bringing the fiber across your property.

If you know what kind of monthly service you want from us, you can put in a request here: https://www.jeffpud.org/broadband-customer-service-request/ 

Note – We have reached the limit of no-charge installations for the Inbetweens area (pink on the map). Future sign-ups will have to pay a $750 construction cost-share.

We still have room for about 100 more no-charge installations in the Olympic Fiber Corridor (purple area).

Feel free to send on other questions or concerns. Thanks again for your interest, patience and support. We look forward to getting you some of the fastest internet in the nation soon.