Frankly, from a business perspective, the company could achieve a higher return on its multimillion-dollar investment in the Peninsula's fiber serving other markets. I appreciate the fact that they listened to the Peninsula's demand for equal access to the information highway. U S West staff support was critical. We benefited from the support of our elected representatives, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks and state Rep. Lynn Kessler. Last, the business leaders in Clallam and Jefferson counties played a key role in making the demand for advanced telecommunications tangible.
Markets drive investments.
Build it now. U S West's fiber backbone is one part of the deployment of the telecom system we require to be competitive in the next century. Building out the network to serve our businesses and homes, building a second fiber loop to provide redundancy and the provision of advanced digital services are the next steps. Given the past performance of our partners, the rest is not far away. I have been meaning to do this since the editorial staff became carriers for the day.