2.25 Frontier Communications Bringing Fast Internet to Entire Island
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$2.25 Vol. 6 No. 5 June 2015 Frontier Communications Bringing Fast Internet to Entire Island DSL Service Becomes Available June 30 By Edith Walden For at least 10 years, Internet service has been available to a few lucky residents along part of South Shore Drive via a digital subscriber line (DSL) that is available from their land- line telephone provider. On June 30, that service will be avail- able to all island residences that are wired for phone service. You don’t have to have a landline telephone to acquire the ser- vice—just the wiring. Islanders may have noticed technicians from Frontier Communications stringing wire between telephone poles in the past several months. That fiber-optic cable will provide EDITH WALDEN the means to transmit signals for Internet service through our phone lines. How it works Frontier technicians string fiber-optic cable for new DSL Internet Here’s a simplified explanation of how it works. Using mi- service on Guemes. crowave radio relay, digital data signals will be broadcast from a Frontier satellite antenna in Burlington to one on the tow- mitted through the fiber-optic cables to a metal cabinet, re- er on Guemes Mountain. From the tower, the data is trans- ferred to as a “central office.” Here a type of network switch routes data signals to an individual subscriber line, where the What’s in a Name? Tribal Pride customer can receive and send data signals over the Internet through a DSL transceiver (modem). Frontier is using an updated type of DSL technology known as “very high-bit DSL” or VDSL. The VDSL technol- ogy is capable of delivering very fast downloads and uploads. EDITH WALDEN There are two central offices on Guemes: one next to Schoolhouse Park and the other near the “chicken-foot” in- tersection of South Shore Road and Holiday Boulevard. How close you are to a central office will affect how fast your Inter- net service can be. For a much more technical description of how DSL and VDSL work, see tinyurl.com/GuemesVDSL. It’s all about speed With the advent of streaming videos and music, large-file Wearing cedar hats, islanders (from left) Sam Barr and Tsul- sharing, and websites that use complex graphics, the need for ton and island descendant David Blackinton drum during a Samish honor song led by Samish Nation general manager speed has increased. Trying to watch an on-demand movie Leslie Eastwood (at microphone), at the naming ceremony with frequent pauses for buffering diminishes the entertain- for the new state ferry M/V Samish. See story on page 9. ment factor, as any Netflix user can attest. (continued on page 5) 2 The Guemes Tide June 2015 Letters Bake-sale gratitude fit my local community and neighbors. Dear editor, Especially in these days of questionable Our heartfelt thanks to all who con- investing in the banking arena, I am tributed their baking skills, and to the wondering if any of my fellow citizens indispensable West Shore Road (Street) feel the same. Mission Statement Walkers, and to Edith Walden who Would you prefer your resources The Guemes Tide is published to steadfastly (wo)manned the ovens. The were banked in a local credit union connect, inform, amuse, serve, and Pie and Bake Sale would not have been or cooperative (often at better return inspire our island community. a success without you. rates and lower defaults than tradition- Thanks again, al banks)? Does anyone else have expe- Subscriptions are $20 a year (10 is- —Peggy Pair, on behalf of the rience with financial cooperatives like sues). Subscribe online at guemestide.org Guemes Island Women’s Fellowship credit unions? Does anyone have skills or send your mailing address and a check made out to The Guemes Tide to: The needed to start one in our area? Or ideas Guemes Tide, 4709 South Shore Drive, A local place to invest on directions and research and people Anacortes, WA 98221-9579. Fellow Guemians, needed to consider forming one? Advertising: Space reservations due the 15th of the month preceding issue For years, since being part of a com- If so, please contact me at 293- date; camera-ready artwork due the 22nd. munity credit union (a financial coop- 3770, or [email protected], Contact [email protected]. erative) in Vermont, I have longed for and maybe we can form an exploratory The Guemes Tide (USPS #014-902) is published monthly except in January a local place to invest what small sav- group. and August by Guemes Tide Publishing, ings I have, so that they would bene- —Bob Anderson 4709 South Shore Drive, Anacortes, WA 98221-9579. Periodical postage paid at Anacortes, Washington. Contents © 2015 by Guemes Tide GIPOA Annual Meeting on June 13 Publishing, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, except as otherwise noted. Citizen of the Year Election Bylined articles and attributed artwork are published by permission, with all The annual meeting of the Guemes a Sustainable Design Assessment Team rights retained by their creators. Opinions Island Property Owners Association (SDAT) that was recruited by the AIA expressed are not necessarily those of the publisher. Unsolicited manuscripts and (GIPOA) will be held at 7 p.m. on Sat- and guided by staff from the AIA Cen- artwork dealing with Guemes Island and urday, June 13, at the Community Cen- ter for Communities by Design. It high- its people are encouraged but may not be ter. Elections for president, treasurer, lights island concerns, and contains returned. and one on-island and one off-island both vision statements and specific rec- Advertising Manager: Tom Murphy trustee will be held. The membership ommendations for individual and col- Business Manager: Thea LaCross also will vote for Citizen of the Year. (If lective actions. (The full report can be Calendar Editor: Lynn Prewitt you haven’t already submitted your bal- found at the Guemes Island Library and Circulation Manager: Dyvon Havens Contributing Editor: Holiday lot, you can bring it to the meeting, or online under the report title.) Matchett join GIPOA then and receive a ballot to The program will celebrate past and Editor Emeritus: Win Anderson cast.) ongoing actions in five focus areas, as Editor-in-Chief and Lead Reporter: Following the business portion of well as noting ongoing challenges. Is- Edith Walden Managing Editor and Layout Lead: the meeting, Bob Groeschell will re- landers who participated in the pro- Nick Allison view the 2006 American Institute of Ar- cess are encouraged to come to celebrate Photo Wizard: Ralph Walden chitects (AIA) report, “Guemes Island their efforts. Those who missed the AIA Other Members of the Publishing SDAT: Creating a Sustainable Guemes.” workshops are invited to attend to gain Team: Anne Casperson, Karen This 53-page report was the product of a sense of island identity and the ongo- Everett, Juby Fouts, Anne Passarelli input from hundreds of islanders and ing sustainability efforts to preserve its Website: Find back issues, subscription info, and more at guemestide.org. character. Email: [email protected] As always, GIPOA meetings are [email protected] open to anyone and all are welcome. [email protected] [email protected] Phone: Leave message at 299-9999. Correction On page 7 of our May issue, a photo POSTMASTER: · caption misidentified the location of the · Send address changes to The Guemes first-aid class sponsored by the Guemes Tide, 4709 South Shore Drive, Ana- Island Fire Department. It took place at cortes, WA 98221-9579 the Church. The Guemes Tide June 2015 3 Peak Season Returns Annual Ferry Haulout Window Announced By Tom Murphy By Edith Walden placing one outdrive with a rebuilt out- The sailing schedule and fare struc- The opening of bids for the annual drive, and servicing the other outdrive. ture for peak season on the Guemes Is- ferry haulout is scheduled for late Ferry Operations Division Manager land ferry began on May 20 and will June or early July, according to Skagit Rachel Rowe has been out on medical extend through September 30 (see en- County Engineer Paul Randall-Grutter. leave since February—initially for two closed insert). Randall-Grutter told the Tide that he months for leg surgery. Her leave has Individual passenger and vehicle expects the contract to be awarded in been extended due to a serious family fares increase during the peak season, late July or early August and that the illness, Randall-Grutter said. She con- with an across-the-board $2 increase for range for possible haulout dates will be tinues to work part time remotely when vehicles under 20 feet and an increase of from September 28 to November 9. possible. $.50 to $1 for passengers. What remain Randall-Grutter the same are the charges for the 25-trip expects the haulout Lending a Helping Hand Abroad passenger punch card, which expires to last 21 to 28 one year after purchase, and the 20-trip days. He explained vehicle-and-driver punch card, which that until the con- expires 90 days from purchase. It is im- tractor is chosen, portant to remember that these cards are the exact dates of nonrefundable. the haulout are un- Oversize vehicles and vehicles with known. trailers will experience some hefty in- In addition to EDITH WALDEN creases during the peak season. The peak routine annual fares escalate with the length of the vehi- maintenance, one cle, from a $3 increase for a vehicle be- of the hull plates tween 20 and 25 feet to an $18 increase needs to be re- for vehicles between 60 and 65 feet. placed. Other ma- Islander Rebecca Ullman described her work to decrease ma- The price of the 10-trip convenience jor items include ternal mortality as a volunteer nurse-midwife with Medecins punch cards for a vehicle (under 20 feet) sandblasting and Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders to islanders on May and driver increases to $100; and to painting the hull, 17.