GCI Aleutians Fiber Project construction kicks off in Port Lions
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Fiber-optic connectivity is coming to the Kodiak Island community of Port Lions through GCI’s Aleutians Fiber Project. Crews recently kicked off construction in the community, where they will be digging trenches and installing fiber conduit in preparation for the deployment of fiber-optic cable to homes and businesses. Once complete, Port Lions will have access to urban-level 2.5 gig consumer internet speeds, plans and pricing.
“We’re excited to start work in our second phase two Aleutians Fiber Project community,” said GCI Principal Program Manager Rebecca Markley. “Our crews are working hard to complete the construction phase as efficiently as possible for the launch of 2.5 gig residential internet speeds in the coming months. Once complete, we’ll be one step closer to closing the digital divide in Alaska.”
“It’s great to have work underway in our community and we’re excited to see fiber-optic connectivity on the horizon,” said Crystal Eggemeyer, Tribal Administrator for the Native Village of Port Lions. “There’s a lot of work to be done, but we’re looking forward to working closely with GCI to make the process as efficient as possible to bring this transformational technology to the residents of Port Lions.”
GCI has launchd 2.5 gig consumer internet speeds in four Aleutians Fiber Project communities: Unalaska, Sand Point, King Cove and Akutan. Fiber-optic connectivity is on the horizon for Chignik Bay and Larsen Bay, which are both in the final stages of network testing. Construction crews also started work earlier this month in Ouzinkie, where they’re building out the local fiber infrastructure.
Being mindful of local communities’ customs, culture and priorities when building out the Aleutians Fiber project, GCI has retained cultural monitors through Area M Consulting, which will be involved for the duration of the project. The cultural monitor team, led by King Cove native Sean Mack, will monitor construction and record and identify any unexpected and uncovered historical sites.
The first phase of the $100 million project is partially funded by a $25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development’s ReConnect Program. It includes an 800-mile-long subsea fiber-optic backbone, deployed in 2022, and the delivery of high-speed internet to Unalaska, King Cove, Sand Point, Akutan, Chignik Bay and Larsen Bay.
The second phase of the project leverages the 800-mile subsea fiber to deliver service to six more communities in the region. The Native Village of Port Lions, in partnership with GCI, was awarded a $29.3 million grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to bring connectivity to Chignik Lagoon, Chignik Lake, Cold Bay, False Pass, Ouzinkie and Port Lions.
For more information on GCI’s Aleutians Fiber Project, visit https://www.gci.com/aleutianfiberproject.
About GCI
Headquartered in Alaska, GCI provides data, mobile, video, voice and managed services to consumer, business, government, and carrier customers throughout Alaska, serving more than 200 communities. The company has invested more than $4 billion in its Alaska network and facilities over the past 40 years and recently launched true standards-based 5G NR service in Anchorage, now the nation’s northernmost 5G service area. Learn more about GCI at www.gci.com. GCI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Broadband Corporation (Nasdaq: LBRDA, LBRDK, LBRDP). Learn more about Liberty Broadband at http://www.libertybroadband.com.