New fiber internet provider looks to debut in Salina

People in Salina will soon see a new name and option when it comes to internet service providers in the area, with fiber internet for residents making its way to the city soon.

The Salina City Commission approved a licensing agreement to allow Clearwave Fiber to install fiber optic cable in the public right-of-way within the city.

"Clearwave Fiber is a newly formed company that's focusing on expanding their network in the state of Kansas," said Dean Andrew zoning administrator for the city.

While Clearwave has its headquarters in Savannah, Georgia, it has been making its way into other states over the past year.

"You don't hear about very many communities (in Kansas) having (fiber internet), that's the exact reason we're looking (to expand) here," said Kala Maxfield, market development manager for Clearwave.

Maxfield said Clearwave was able to acquire RG Fiber, based out of Kansas City, Kansas in March of 2022, which allowed the company to step foot into the state.

"RG Fiber had...several locations where they had (installed) fiber already into the ground," Maxfield said.

Expanding high-speed internet access to more than just large cities

One of the visions of Clearwave is to allow access to broadband internet, defined as 25 megabits per second by the Federal Communications Commission, in areas that have traditionally been underserved or unserved with those kinds of speeds.

"Governor (Laura) Kelly has put forward some new indicatives for broadband (access) in Kansas, and we just know that the state is underserved," Maxfield said.

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Maxfield said this push to give more access opened the door for companies like Clearwave to come in and look at serving some of those communities.

"For a lot of (these communities), these people have not been able to have sufficient broadband for years and that's something we want to get back to Kansas," Maxfield said.

In the day of people working from home, streaming entertainment or even using telehealth services, Maxfield said having reliable internet connections is important to residents.

"We're looking to expand to over 500,000 homes across the country in the next five years," Maxfield said. "Really, Kansas fits the mold of opportunity that we'd like to expand to."

Fiber is 'the wave of the future'

According to Maxfield, having fiber internet connection in the community is a way to bring Salina up to speed on technology.

"Fiber really is the wave of the future," Maxfield said. "It has unlimited possibilities, and the reliability you get with fiber is really unmatched compared to any other medium."

One of the reasons for this reliability is the synchronicity of speeds going to and from the user.

"You're able to have the same download and upload speeds," Maxfield said.

These speeds being the same and the reliability of the connection can be a benefit in many areas of life, including healthcare, working from home or even online gaming.

"When a doctor is reading a report in a hospital and then they have to send those results onto somebody in New York City or a specialist to read those...having that same download and upload speed really helps with the connectivity and how fast it can move," Maxfield said.

According to Maxfield, the average home has around 20 devices connected, much more than what it was like just five years ago.

"More and more, every device from your thermostat, to your refrigerator, to your garage door, kids tablet, your phone, your TV, all of those are connected to the internet," Maxfield said.

Having all these things connected to the same internet connection means that they are sharing bandwidth and speed, which can cause issues when multiple devices are being used at the same time.

"There's nothing more frustrating than a video call going on (while) someone is trying to stream their TV service or watching Netflix," Maxfield said. "If you're also trying to talk to grandma or your kids are online doing schoolwork and (things start) buffering."

She said having a good connection to fast service like fiber will allow people to do all these things without interruption.

When will people start seeing Clearwave in Salina and how much will fiber cost?

After the agreement with the city was approved, Maxfield said Clearwave is looking to move forward quickly to get this fast connection to as many people as possible.

Getting the word out to the community about the service and the company is one of the first steps Clearwave is taking.

"People will probably see (presence) in the next 60 days," Maxfield said.

Part of this will include putting up billboard advertisement and sending out mailers to households.

As far as getting the fiber network in place, Maxfield said Clearwave is hoping to begin construction by the upcoming spring.

She said a number of factors, including supply chains, weather and others means a timeline of when the service may be available to residents is hard to pinpoint, but Clearwave wants Salina to know that it is committed to the community.

"Implementing (and installing) broadband infrastructure is very expensive," Maxfield said. "That's why (existing) providers haven't just turned around and upgraded their networks yesterday. It's expensive and there's a lot of upfront costs."

Taking on this expense, which Maxfield said will be in the millions of dollars for Salina, means that Clearwave is investing in the future of the city.

"We are 100% funding (this investment) ourselves," Maxfield said. "We're not (being) provided any grants or match funding from the city."

That investment and commitment to the community isn't just with the initial construction of infrastructure. Maxfield said Clearwave is dedicated to being a presence in the city.

"We don't believe in managing from afar," Maxfield said. "There'll be a face (present) with the name (of) the person."

Once Clearwave Fiber is in place in the city, Maxfield said it will be available at competitive rates for people throughout the community.

Current rates for the service begins at $65 for 250 megabits per second (Mbps), $75 for 500 Mbps and $85 for its Fiber 1 Gig plan with 1,000 Mbps.

Maxfield said these speeds represent upload and download and that rates include unlimited, uncapped data.