PUD buys downtown fiber-optic loop: public-private partnership will allow companies to hook onto...

The local public utility district's purchase of a fiber-optic line in downtown Bellingham is what the district hopes will be the beginning of a county-wide network to bring Whatcom County businesses up to speed -- 65 times the speed of what is technologically available now.

The Public Utility District No. 1 of Whatcom County purchased the six-mile loop of fiber-optic cable from Avista Communications in April for $250,000. The acquisition of this fiber line is the first step in the PUD's effort to connect Whatcom communities through its planned InfiNET fiber-optic networ