Council Talks Fiber Internet and Rumors at April Meeting

The April meeting of the Whitehall Town Council, held Monday, April 12 in the Council Chambers, was a quiet one, with few action items on the docket.

A presentation by Lee and Jason Good of TSS regarding fiber internet brought questions, concerns, and interest from the Council.

At the March meeting, AirGrids from the Dillon area had presented to the Council, stating they were working in conjunction with TSS and MTWeb. At this month’s meeting, Good corrected that statement, noting that he was not working with AirGrids and that his company had its own plans to extend fiber in the Whitehall area. Good added that a test of fiber internet was already in place on First Street and that about 20 businesses and residences currently operate on the TSS fiber, including the Whitehall Community Library and the Whitehall School.

TSS’s presentation was to let the Town know of their intentions with the fiber and also to clarify their position with AirGrids, who was on the agenda to present but canceled their attendance at the meeting.

After TSS’s presentation, Council discussed structuring a plan for how fiber installation will be handled in the near future.

“Let me tell you when you are digging for a water main break and you’re restricted somehow, it’s a real nightmare,” Public Works Director Kory Klapan said. Klapan suggested the Town restrict how many fiber companies are allowed to install or have the Town install conduit for fiber and then lease that back to the internet companies when they wish to add fiber. The Council asked for further information and tabled the discussion until more information could be examined.

Councilwoman Pat Peterson told the Council that there are many rumors circulating the town in regards to the RFP for turning the parkland in the Valley View subdivision into housing lots.

“People think we’ve already sold it, that it's for low-income housing..the rumors are everywhere,” Peterson said.

“We want people to know the stakes are there for surveying purposes. Nothing has been sold. Nothing has been decided. Any decisions made will be made in plain view, with public meetings.”

OTHER NEWS:

• Christensen announced that the proposed playground project she is spearheading was awarded a $20k grant from the Washington Foundation, with an additional $20k would be available in 2023 if the Town matches the funds.

• Resolutions were passed to increase the water, sewer, and garbage rates as required by the DEQ.