HARRIS, Mich. (WZMQ) – As access to high-speed internet continues to be a challenge for many rural parts of the Upper Peninsula, one internet provider is looking to change that.
Highline Internet began building fiber optic networks across the Upper Peninsula in 2021, opening its first retail location in Escanaba last year. On Thursday, Highline hosted its second annual Construction Kick-Off event at the Island Resort & Casino.
“Tonight’s celebration is to kick off our 2024 construction season,” said Bruce Moore, Highline’s President and General Manager for the Midwest. “This is our opportunity to say ‘thank you’ in advance for what’s going to be a very busy summer.”
This season, Highline plans to install 1,600 miles of fiber optic internet, reaching almost 15,000 new homes in addition to its current 20,000.
“Our goal is to serve over 60,000 homes, and we’re on our way to doing that,” Moore said. “We have the funding as a part of a grant program to get fiber out to the communities, so we’re very excited to help people out that have been suffering with really terrible internet access for a long time in the rural parts of the Upper Peninsula.”
Highline celebrated the progress being made toward that goal with the organizations making it possible, like LeDuc Built Construction, Utility Contracting, Calix, and Atlantic Engineering Group.
“It’s really a team effort for us to build our network,” said Moore. “That’s including the counties and the townships, MDOT, UPPCO… We’re trying to be great custodians of the right of way and the utility poles that we connect to. At the end of the day, we end up with fiber in front of a household that can genuinely be delighted with a brand new access to the world through a fiber internet connection.”
Moore says parts of the U.P. have been underserved for far too long. He believes Highline can solve that issue for thousands as the construction season begins.
“The rural households have the exact same internet needs as downstate in the Metro Detroit area,” he said. “Just because somebody chooses to live in a rural part of the community, that shouldn’t mean they don’t have access to great internet service, and that’s our mission.”
For more information on Highline, visit highlinefast.com.
