Fiber optic company holds groundbreaking ceremony amid pushback
SAN LUIS, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - There is some pushback to Allo Fiber moving forward with operations in Yuma County, and the company's President and CEO talked about the investigation requested by some Arizona lawmakers who feel Yuma County disregarded Arizona law and accountability surrounding the fiber optic project.
Some Arizona state representitives are pointing fingers and asking the state's Attorney General to take a deeper dive into Allo Fiber's operation in Yuma County.
"The first phase of the project, believe it or not, came at six months ahead of schedule and over $6 million under budget and it was very safe, so we've done everything we said," said Brad Moline, the President an CEO of Allo Fiber.
The lawmakers claim a lack of oversight and accountability surrounding the fiber optic project.
During the groundbreaking ceremony in San Luis, Arizona on Friday, Moline said they are operating in an ethical and honest manner.
"In the industry, we call it FUD: Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt. If you lose, you do things through legal channels and that we look [at] it as frivolous and not a meaningful or an interelectoral situation. It's just when people lose bids, they do different things," Moline expressed.
Construction to expand rural broadband in Yuma County has been underway since last year. The fiber- optic company has invested more than $100 million in Arizona.
"...And we are just getting started we expect to invest over a half-a-billion dollars here and we anticipated permanent employment of 700," Moline shared.
The project is expected to be completed in two years.
As far as the investigation requested by the Arizona lawmakers, the Attorney General has not said anything about potentially looking into the agreement between Allo and Yuma County.
