(Note: The photo is of me in Leavenworth pointing at one of their PUD provided fiber access panels. They also have a Tesla charging station, and largely underground infrastructure.)

I never want to give the illusion that I am endorsing any specific candidate for mayor. There are too many issues for that, and this petition is about fiber so I want to keep its scope to that. With that said, while I did have good meetings with all of the mayoral candidates about broadband, Dig Once, and public fiber there is one candidate that has consistently done more research than all of the others. I recently donated the book "Fiber" by Susan Crawford to the public library. I am happy to say that not only did Garrett O'Brien read it, he also called and texted me to talk it over. He now really gets that fiber is critical infrastructure and that Bellingham is NOT prepared for the future with its current setup. He also, actually thanks me for my work on the issue! Which is nice.

I won't try to recap the entire conversation, but here is one quote from Garrett that I think helps to show his understanding of the issue, "Thanks Jon, I am shocked at the reality here - to be honest, I had no idea. Regardless of the outcome of the election, I think it is important that public works provides support and resources to a citizen committee that can draft a strategic plan for fiber infrastructure. I think it is also important to dispel the myth that 5G will replace the need for fiber." 

So there you have it. Garrett seems to care enough to actually do research on broadband issues and tries to get the whole picture, not just keep public works happy at the expense of our city. I hope this will lead to the other candidates at least reading "Fiber" too and more discussions with unbiased tech experts in our community.  

I should note that the other candidates want a tech committee and a Dig Once policy too, but it's always good to work with a leader that also really understands the issue. I know, it's one of many.... but public fiber really will help address most of them as outlined in the petition note.