Construction of a fiber-optic line to complete a broadband loop around the North Olympic Peninsula is expected to begin in August.
Forks City Attorney/Planner Rod Fleck told local business leaders Tuesday that a ribbon cutting and groundbreaking ceremony for the project is currently being planned for August.
“This has been a whirlwind project that has taken more than two years of dedication and hard work,” Fleck told members of the Port Angeles Business Association during their weekly breakfast meeting.
Environmental permits will allow for completion during a 60-day window once construction begins, he said.
A state board approved $1.7 million for the installation of a fiber-optic cable to fill the “Sappho Gap” in April 2001.
The gap is a 26-mile missing link between broadband communication networks on Clallam County’s east and west sides.
On the east side, Qwest installed an 85-mile fiber-optic line from Silverdale to Joyce in October 2000.
On the west, CenturyTel Communications Inc. installed a fiber-optic trunk from Aberdeen to Forks in January 2001.
But the two networks were never connected, leaving the “Sappho Gap,” which Fleck said has been a barrier to business development.
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