Tag Archives: CityWest on Cortes

Communications

Coming this Spring: Cortesians choose their Internet provider

Sometime this spring, possibly as early as March, Cortes Island residents will get to choose their internet provider.

After building Twincomm up to the company islanders recognize today, on June 28, 2021, former General Manager Dino Tsakonas left to join CityWest. 

In an interview at that time, he told Cortes Currents that this came about as a result of the Connected Coast project, which will bring reliable high speed internet to Cortes Island. CityWest partnered with the Strathcona Regional District (SRD) to become the local provider.

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Communications

High Speed Internet could reach Cortes Island as early as December

Cortes Island’s new high speed internet system could be live as early as December, otherwise early in 2023.

Randy, from CityWest, gave Cortes Currents a very graphic illustration of what this will mean. I am currently downloading data from the internet at a rate of 21.35 megabits per second (Mbps) and uploading at 6.50 Mbps.  Randy discussed plans for up to 100 or up to 500 Mbps, download and upload, depending on how much I wanted to pay. That ‘up to’ is important because customers might not experience these speeds at their computer terminals, but we are still talking about much faster service. He also said there are no limits for the number of gigabytes I could use in a month, hence no overage charges.

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Communications

500 kilometres of fibre optic cable laid

The Connected Coast is a joint communications project undertaken by CityWest and the Strathcona Regional District (SRD). They will bring high speed internet to 90,000 households in remote communities from Haida Gwaii to northern Vancouver Island. As of June 2, they have laid more than 500 of the 3,400 kilometres of the fibre optic cable needed by this project. 

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Communications

CityWest may be charging people with long driveways extra

Up until now, CityWest has been offering to install high speed internet to Cortes Island homes for free. They did not take some of the island’s long driveways into account. This is changing, CityWest says some people will need to pay extra.

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Communications

High speed internet: Are Read, West Thurlow and part of Quadra Island being left out?

How our local government works – Part 4 of 5 from the Feb 9 SRD Board Meeting

As the Strathcona Regional District (SRD) prepares to amend its indebtedness agreement with CityWest, to pay for the installation of high speed internet, Regional Director Jim Abram is concerned that parts of area C are being left out.  

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