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Vallecito needs decent internet service, residents say

Internet service at Vallecito is lousy and capacity is maxed out, a lodge owner and a Realtor told the county commissioners at their "on the road" visit to Vallecito on Aug. 17.

Realtor Marilyn Lange complained about the service provided by CenturyLink. "We have no bandwidth left, so new people can't get a connection," she said.

CenturyLink customers are supposed to get 1.5 megabytes per second of service, Lange said, but most get 1 mbs or less. "We are losing customers. We need help to get internet."

A man in the lodging business agreed but said, "I wish I could get 1 mbs. I spend most of my time at around 200 kbs. I did better on dial-up." He objected that CenturyLink is the only provider in the area.

County Manager Joe Kerby noted the county might have a ballot question this fall to let the county opt out of Senate Bill 152, passed by the legislature in 2005 to block local governments from providing broadband services directly or indirectly, by leasing excess broadband capacity to private providers. Bayfield, Ignacio, and Durango will have opt-out questions on the ballot.

It will cultivate the growth of broadband infrastructure, Kerby said.

Commissioner Julie Westendorff said, "Providers say, 'I can't make any money.' The option could be for local governments or a district to fund a line up here. The obstacle is the fiber. Someone else can provide the service" once the fiber is there. "It opens the door to some options that don't exist now. We have a lot of bandwidth and we can't let anyone use it because of SB 152; a whole bunch of traffic lanes that we can't let anyone drive on."

The lodge owner asserted that CenturyLink has the infrastructure, but they won't upgrade the "cross box" that would improve service. He asked county officials to put pressure on the company. "I don't expect 10 mbs downloads," he said. "I'd be happy with 1.5 mbs."

Kerby said he would contact CenturyLink.

A CenturyLink tech representative in Idaho said a cross box is where neighborhood lines come together. It would be the DSL equipment in the box that would need to be upgraded or a new DSL terminal installed to extend service. That would be very expensive - maybe $1 million, the rep said. The company is trying to get higher speeds to mountain towns around the West, but because of the cost, communities with more population get this investment sooner. Service from a DSL terminal extends from the box for around 16,000 feet, with slowest speeds as that limit is approached. A new terminal would provide another 16,000 feet.

The Aug. 17 discussion also included a proliferation of thistles at Vallecito, especially on some private land near the Middle Mountain Road turnoff. Westendorff referred people to the county website for information on noxious weeds.

"If we could just get on the internet," one man commented, drawing laughs. There was another comment that getting on the internet is a lot easier at 5 a.m. than 5 p.m.