Port of Clarkston plans to extend fiber-optic communications to Asotin

The Port of Clarkston has set aside $435,000 in its 2019 budget to extend its fiber-optic communications network 6 miles to Asotin.

“There are entities there that would like to have more connectivity,” Port Manager Wanda Keefer said of the expansion.

The money the port expects to spend on the network is the largest expense in its $1.88 million 2019 budget, which port commissioners passed Thursday with little comment.

The fiber-optic infrastructure has been a priority for the port for a number of years. Its lines reach all the schools in the Clarkston School District, Tri-State Memorial Hospital, Walla Walla Community College and the Port of Clarkston’s Turning Pointe business park west of Evans Road. It connects with similar systems constructed by the Port of Lewiston and Port of Whitman in their jurisdictions.

The ports all lease network space at a set rate to large employers and companies that provide internet, cellular telephone and other telecommunications products. The approach is aimed at creating a level playing field for telecommunications companies of all sizes to encourage competition and keep prices for the service they sell reasonable.

Other big ticket items in the budget include $270,000 for dredging, a cost that will be split with the Lewis Clark Terminal that has a storage facility along the Snake River, and $349,000 for administration.

The biggest administrative cost is Keefer’s compensation. She will earn a salary of $90,000 in 2019, plus roughly $30,000 in benefits, including medical insurance.

On the revenue side, two of the largest sources are $660,000 from leases and rentals, and $360,000 from property taxes.