Rock Island Communications founder Mike Greene, who has most recently been serving as vice president of technology, has announced that he will be leaving the company as of Oct. 15.

When OPALCO purchased Rock Island in February, Greene stayed on to help with the transition, merging staff and operations to keep the business humming while a huge infrastructure expansion began. With that transition solidifying, Greene has taken the opportunity to step down. Company operations will continue to be directed by Gerry Lawlor, Executive Vice President of Rock Island.

“Rock Island is revolutionizing Internet services for our communities,” said Lawlor. “We are taking a local ISP to the next level, delivering modern services by building on the foundation of OPALCO’s backbone.”

It’s not unusual for founding leaders to step down in the year following an acquisition, but Greene’s expertise and institutional knowledge will surely be missed.

“We wouldn’t be here today without the significant investment that Mike has made in our communities,” said Foster Hildreth, President of Rock Island and General Manager of OPALCO. “Rock Island Communications is the product of his passion, foresight and skillful entrepreneurship in San Juan County.”

Rock Island continues to build out its staff in both the Friday Harbor and Eastsound offices. In August, the company hired Chief Financial Officer Chad Bailey to lead the accounting team, and hiring will continue as the business grows. Rick Lysen, who has been the architect and manager of the OPALCO fiber backbone for the past 14 years, will continue to oversee network operations.

The team currently serves thousands of customers, and is constructing “fiberhoods” and LTE wireless systems throughout the county to deliver next generation, fiber-based Internet services. Rock Island currently has a total of 235 fiber customers and more than 300 currently under construction.