CAMPBELL RIVER, B.C. – The Connected Coast project is gaining momentum.
The Strathcona Regional District (SRD) Board has taken another step to help the project along. The Board has established a subsidiary corporation to deliver the project.
The Strathcona Connected Coast Network Corporation (SCCNC) will operate as a stand-alone corporation reporting to one lone shareholder, the SRD Board.
“Given the scope, complexity and magnitude of the Connected Coast project, we have been advised that the best way to approach the project is through the creation of a subsidiary. This will minimize operational risk for the SRD while allowing the Board to retain control of the project,” said SRD Board Chair Michele Babchuk, in a release.
“The excitement around the region for the project is building as people are starting to realize how life-changing this project will be for our rural and remote communities. The SRD Board will start the task of appointing the SCCNC Board over the coming weeks and we look forward to seeing the corporation stand up.”
The project will greatly improve Internet capability across coastal British Columbia, with over 3,400 kilometres of under-the-sea, high-speed fibre-optic cable being installed from north of Prince Rupert, to Haida Gwaii, south along the coast to the Vancouver terminal, then around Vancouver Island.
Up to 154 communities, including 56 First Nations communities will be able to connect to high-speed Internet.
The SCCNC Board will include the SRD’s Chief Administrative Officer as the shareholder’s representative. The Board is expected to be in place this summer. One of its first tasks will be to hire the SCCNC senior management team.
For more details on the Connected Coast project, visit www.connectedcoast.ca.
