Calista seeks airport land at Kwethluk, Napakiak to bring hardwired broadband

Calista Corporation wants to put communications shelters on state airport land in Kwethluk and Napakiak, with the goal of delivering hardwired broadband internet to both Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta villages. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities posted the parallel permit proposals Tuesday.

The two filings are nearly identical. Each covers Parcel C at Kwethluk Airport and Parcel A at Napakiak Airport, roughly 625 square feet of airport property each. Both permits run five years and carry an annual rent of $625 plus any associated fees. DOT&PF designated the parcels as non-aeronautical use, classifying the shelters as outside flight operations. The agency described the purpose plainly: "Structures are necessary to provide hardwired broadband internet to the community."

Calista represents more than 34,000 Alaska Native shareholders across 56 villages along the Kuskokwim and Yukon rivers and the Bering Sea coast. Both Kwethluk and Napakiak sit in that region. Reliable internet has been scarce in communities like these, where slow or absent connectivity has complicated telehealth, schooling, and basic commerce.

Satellite options such as Starlink have expanded in rural Alaska, but state broadband planners say terrestrial connections lower latency and support higher-capacity demand over time. The state's Office of Broadband has argued that hardwired infrastructure provides the backbone that satellite and wireless alone can't fully replace, particularly for institutional users like clinics and schools.

Napakiak Erosion Risk

Napakiak adds a complication the Kwethluk proposal doesn't face. The village is experiencing severe erosion along the Kuskokwim River and is actively planning to relocate infrastructure, according to the state's community profile for Napakiak. That profile raises the concern that a shelter sited at the airport there could become a stranded asset if relocation plans shift the community's footprint before the five-year permit expires.

The public comment period is open now. Written comments and competing applications may be submitted to DOT&PF during the comment window.