Forced to deal with eyesore

I am not a person to make many complaints or share negative actions. However, after going to the local source to find answers I am at a loss as to how to proceed.

I recently arrived home after a two-week absence from my home of many years in Sanders County. Like many county residents I have experienced the ongoing traffic snags on Highway 200 this past summer, to gain high speed internet and never complained. I am a proponent of the project and know the importance of having the ability to communicate with our families, pursue educational goals, take care of health issues, and compete in global markets. I was both shocked and disappointed to pull in my driveway after a short absence to find a newly installed junction vault marked with a pole capped in hunter orange so you can’t miss the vision at my entry way.

My husband and I have lived at our small ranch for over 30 years until his recent passing. We have always taken great pains to keep our property line and entry way bordering highway 200 as clean and scenic as possible. Now with the installation of this junction vault the scenic beauty is questionable at best. In fact, everyone who has come to the ranch since has mentioned seeing the ugly junction vault. After talking with one of the local workers of FiberTel, the contractor for the job, I was given the name and contact information of the local foreman of the project. The foreman’s response was to leave me with no recourse as the vault is on their right of way and it was engineered to be there from the start. I called back and left a message that I needed to speak with him further. At least to obtain a contact at a higher level. That has been almost a week ago and no word.

I feel that the local contractor did not deal in fairness with the property owners on the placement of these eyesores. Normally, I would not complain but I think we are being forced to put up with it so we all can have high speed internet. I have no problem helping my neighbors and local communities. But, nobody made me aware of the fact that I would have an ugly eyesore at my entryway that has the serious potential of creating a major safety hazard while mowing, reducing the value of my property and degrading the scenic beauty of Highway 200. So, a free high-speed rural internet has become fairly expensive for me.

Obviously, there are some solutions, maybe not the best but still solutions. Like landscaping to mask the visual impact, painting in a manner that does not immediately draw attention to the vault or even reconsidering placement by a few feet. However, l have not been afforded the respect of even a response to my last call. I think this is unprofessional and without regard for a property owner who has invested a life-time of loving care doing the right thing along highway 200. It has not been a cheap pursuit in the upkeep of our entryway and property line either financially or labor wise. When Blackfoot was laying in individual internet lines they worked with each landowner addressing all of the issues I have shared. I wonder how many other property owners have or will be negatively affected by FiberTel’s actions.

Dianne Hanna, Trout Creek