— from Steve Hudson —
OPALCO’s recent “guest opinion” and bill insert “understanding the rate increase” are specious. Building for broadband Internet service is not like “bringing electricity to the islands in 1937”. Being a member and paying for it then was a choice each person could make on their own. Not so with broadband. Electric ratepayers subsidize that service extensively. The only choice they have now is to change the board of directors or to disconnect their service.
Many millions in increased debt, rates, and operating expenses will be paid through members electric bills. Construction costs claimed to be for grid control and paid by electric rates are to be used for broadband service. As one example of rising cost, simply by dividing the increase in operating expenses from 10 years ago by todays total meters makes your share right now about $600 per year, or $50 per month. And the big spending has only just begun.
It’s not a question of whether broadband is useful or good. It is both. It’s not whether you hate CenturyLink, or think that “somebody has to do it”. The question is whether the broadband customer, generally those with more money, should be subsidized by the electric ratepayer. Those who can’t afford, or don’t want broadband will be paying for it anyway. We all are already, with much worse to come if this board continues as is. Words like scam and theft come to mind. The question is also whether OPALCO’s former financial strength, lower rates, and integrity should be sacrificed so a minority of well-heeled members can get the Internet speed wanted for video and gaming. Well over half of Internet traffic is for entertainment. Are games and movies worth it?
Members, please wake up and speak up. Despite the policies and obligations of this board of directors, you are being deceived and used. Our formerly reliable electric co-op has been hijacked by broadband extremists.
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Steve,
Broadband is not only about entertainment. It’s also about jobs, specifically about enabling younger people with families to be able to live here, make a living, and participate in our community.
I’m a software developer, and I can work from anywhere that has a decent internet connection. I’m lucky enough to have a decent internet connection at home and where I work. Others are not. I know of at least 1 person who is moving off the island BECAUSE the internet is so crappy and they can’t work efficiently.
How many people never actually moved here in the first place when they found out they could only get 1.5Mmbps DSL?
I applaud OPALCO and the current Board for finally moving in the direction to invest in the infrastructure needed to keep our community growing and vibrant. Oh, and access to the internet IS like electricity was in 1937, you just won’t realize this until 2030.
Chris Sutton
I’ll add to Chris’s comment to say that I also know of an individual that left the island because internet connectivity was insufficient for him to do his job. He was also an EMT in an area of the island which desperately needs EMTs. So not only did we loose the economic stream from a person working full time on the island, but his neighbors also lost a first responder in an area with virtually no first responders. That’s a double whammy.
Maybe games and movies do take up over half the internet traffic. Are you going to outlaw that? I’m just tired of growing old while I wait and wait for a webpage to respond. We can thank OPALCO for coming to our rescue!
I have heard of other real examples of those who chose not to live here because they couldn’t get the net speed they wanted. There’s no question that some will benefit from the availability of broadband. Who pays for it is kind of important. My point is whether the electric ratepayer, without choice, should be saddled with the enormous cost? Technology gets rapidly cheaper and better. When competition erodes the Opalco grip on the market, if they ever actually get it, the electric ratepayer is still on the hook for the tens of millions in debt funding this expansion.
Steve, do you really want to live in a society where you just pay for what you use/need, when you need it?
Should only those people who have children pay for schools?
These large projects are only possible when everyone pays a small amount towards a larger goal that benefits everyone. Maybe it’s not a direct benefit, but everyone benefits indirectly.
Steve Hudson falsely asserts that broadband has taken over OPALCO. Not even close. Providing fiber internet service to members is a small part of the OPALCO budget. Most of the broadband initiative cost will be paid by members that choose to have it.
Yet, all members, rich and poor, including Steve, benefit from the initiative, in the form of improved first-responder sheriff and fire communications, improved economic infrastructure, improved real estate value, educational resources, telemedicine, and generally less waiting around for slow unreliable internet.
For those interested in learning more, see: https://www.opalco.com/docs/2015-budget-report/
Note: I consult for OPALCO on Energy Efficiency and Community Solar initiatives.
Once again, when technology is employed for the greater good of the whole, liberals demand that the rich foot the bill for everyone. Everyone, everywhere benefits from advanced communication technology in every community, County, State and country. While it is true that some cost may be implied to all residents of a geographical area whether or not they fully utilize the particular communication service, they all equally benefit from the reduced costs extended to everyone in the same area. Monetary savings are realized by everyone in this geographical area. All retail, commercial, industrial and government services can operate more efficiently and economically through these improved Internet services.
It is said that time is money. I personally have spent excessive time (which equals money) accessing information I need daily via the Internet. I welcome the opportunity to pass on my savings (in time and cost) to my local friends and customers. Efficiency of business communication is a blessing and economical savings to everyone.
The issue here is not whether this was the right move but that it was rammed down the memberships throat without a vote. A monumental change in scope should have been put to a vote.
Whether someone moves because their internet is slow is irrelevant. They will be replaced with someone else. There is almost no available rentals anyway. You also have the issue of probably forcing Orcas Online out of business in the long term. This is not capitalism at work. This is unfair competition to Rick and Stu by a basically subsidized entity who can borrow or raise our rates if need be. I hope this comment is not deleted as others I have posted have been.
Harvey,
The Board is the elected representative of the membership and therefore is empowered to make decisions and be accountable to the membership.
We saw this principal in action during the OPALCO board election last year, where some of the candidates, including Steve Hudson, ran on the platform of stopping OPALCO from making fiber internet available to its members. Those candidates all lost. Members voted.
I believe the reality is that the BOD and OPALCO management is afraid to have a straight yes/no vote of the OPALCO membership on the Broadband issue with its cost and the business risks it entails. They know that there has never been a true indication of majority membership support of the concept after the cost and risks were at least partially divulged by OPALCO. Instead they listened to their ex-Wall Street consultant and others rather than ask the membership.
I would have voted a resounding NO on the plan being implemented by OPALCO and I know I am not alone.
As an aside, I have talked to several folks who feel as I do but they are afraid to publicly say so because of their business interests or fear of being “shunned” by some of our residents. Sad but true.
When this issue came up a few months ago I stated that Opalco should have gone to Century Tel and offered them the use of the fibre for free if they installed the repeater stations for the end of the line. Opalco wanted to charge. The fibre was financed on the electrical side and we did not have to make money on it. The problem with the current plan, aside from ramming it down the members throats is that it is mostly WiFi. This will pollute our almost non toxic environment with radiation. Now you may not think that is a problem but CANCER has gone through the roof in the last 50 or 60 years. WHY you might ask. A giant increase in electrical use with all the attended radiation. Carbon monoxide from the cars. Pesticides from the “food”. The fact that 75% of “food” isn’t food but reading the label it sounds like a chemistry experiment. My wife along with the Europeans subscribe to the better safe than sorry method of life. That is why Europeans won’t buy our genetically modified beef. Americans have a habit of ignoring anything that does not gel with their narrative. Fox News is an excellent example of this. So all of you who are cheering this environmental disaster as your internet speeds increase along with your rate of cancer may someday wonder if this last blast of radiation did you in. It sounds like a Greek tragedy to me.
Whether or not the action of undertaking this venture which is costly to every Member, the choice for which should have been let out to a vote of the members. Then every member would have recognition that we as a membership knowingly decided to enter into this very significant investment and maybe even more importantly significantly differing character of relationship in our electric utility. This one seems to have placed the board in a very awkward position.
I’m not going to get into this debate, but I do wonder why anyone who is so concerned about the impact of electricity use, radiation, carbon monoxide, pesticides, etc. and increase in cancer would even continue to live here. I’m sure there are many areas in our country and others where they could live in the type of environment they prefer. I have faith that OPALCO will do the right thing and faith in our membership that they will vote in the best board members. And, as in government elections, if you don’t vote you shouldn’t have anything to complain about. Remember we are a member-owned cooperative, and as such the members are the ones who vote in the board members. The annual meeting is held on the ferry every year in May and it’s sad that many years very few members have bothered to attend or have not mailed in their ballots.
So OPALCO, let’s just have a vote on the subject, and settle this once and for all!
Broadband is a reality, like it or not, and despite Opalco’s ham-fisted handling of the matter so far. The money has been/will be spent, the plan is on track, and the members will have no say beyond that most basic of all statements. An election for board members will come, and a statement will be made.
OPALCO’s acquisition of Rock Island Communications should significantly improve access to hi-speed internet service for island residents. CenturyLink has not and will not improve their infrastructure, since our islands are such a small market, and they cannot receive an adequate return on such an investment.
OPALCO has stepped up to fill that void by providing us with 21st century internet and phone options. Their hi-speed internet offerings will not only allow us to use internet services just as if we were off-island with many more options, at a very competitive price, but will also improve our property values by opening up our real estate market to buyers that would previously not consider purchasing here because of woefully inadequate internet access.
More people will consider visiting our islands or purchasing property here because they can work from rental property or from home, which was generally not possible before OPALCO’s well-considered decision to provide this much-needed service.
This will also vastly improve our law enforcement, healthcare and emergency services, by providing much needed communications redundancy, which is not available from previous providers.
It is not just most of the United States, but most of the developed world that have much better Internet access than our island communities, until now.
We should all thank OPALCO for having the foresight to move forward with broadband plans, despite the nebulous criticism from the minority of vocal naysayers who challenge improvement ideas without any plans or actions of their own to make things better, and those who don’t want any change at all, and would rather not keep up with the rest of the world, regardless of the many benefits that improved internet access will bring to everyone in our island communities.