MyWave receives notice of intent to award $10.9 million to bring fiber to Harney County schools; county to coordinate permitting and potential resident service

Harney County Court on April 6 received details from Justin Chase of MyWave that the company has been notified of a notice of intent to award a contract to install fiber to seven Harney County schools using USAC (E-rate) funding.

“It's about 135 miles of fiber that we're receiving funds to install,” Chase told the court, describing a phased, three-year build that he said would begin with Drewzy and a second site (listed in the procurement) and include a major second-year build stretching from Burns down to Double O and Diamond. Chase said the notice of intent to award covers roughly $10.9 million for the school installs.

The project will replace the county's existing microwave backbone and satellite connections to schools with dedicated fiber capable of multi-gigabit service. Chase said the contracts solicited multiple configurations — from 100 megabit links up to 10 gigabit and dark fiber — and that the proposal his team submitted can deliver 10 Gbps to schools “from day one.” He said future upgrades to higher capacities would be possible through equipment changes rather than new cable.

Commissioner Patty Doro framed the award as the result of years of local planning and grant work, including a rapid-design study and coordination with regional partners. She credited local partners and persistent efforts after earlier federal grant rounds (BDP, BEAD) did not fund Harney County projects.

The court discussed practical hurdles for the build: permitting jurisdiction on major corridors (the portion of Highway 205 will need ODOT coordination), an expected mix of aerial attachments and new pole installations, and utility ownership questions (Lumen/level‑three fiber along the highway, Harney Electric poles for many attachments, and an Idaho Power/OTC area for a northern extension). Chase warned that a large second-year phase could require installing roughly 1,100 utility poles, a task too large for MyWave to accomplish alone and likely to rely on outside utility contractors.

Chase said the school-focused award does not automatically fund a countywide residential build but that engineering will include opportunities to serve nearby residences and that MyWave intends to pursue additional grant funding and flexible programs focused on small, remote deployments to reach more households.

On the timeline, Chase said the school builds were planned over three years with potential one-year extensions if unexpected problems arise; he committed to sharing a more detailed build schedule with the court once engineering and fielding are complete.

Why it matters: the switch from microwave and satellite links to fiber is intended to provide substantially higher reliability and capacity for county schools and could create some opportunity to extend service to residents along the new routes. The award also signals a large, near-term infrastructure investment in Harney County that will require permitting coordination, local contracting and some grant-seeking to expand residential reach.

Next steps: Chase said he will provide the court updates and a formal build schedule as engineering progresses; the county will coordinate permitting with ODOT and local utilities and evaluate workforce and contracting needs for pole installation and long-route construction.