U-S West Communications has found a buyer for phone systems in 32 Iowacommunities. Company officials announced last year they would sell off somelocal exchanges, saying they did not fit as well as others into thecompany’s long term plans. U-S West spokeswoman Lynn Gipple says they’vereached an agreement with “Citizens Utilities” which may give those phonecustomers better service.Citizens already owns phone services in 13 states. The one-point-six-fivemillion dollar deal includes U-S West systems in eight other states. Gipplesays it could take a year to complete the deal.She says Citizens will own four-point-eight percent of the lines in Iowaonce the deal is done.Gipple doesn’t know of any other exchanges that will be sold. The communities involved in the sale are: Algona, Anthon, Blairsburg, Britt,Cherokee, Correctionville, Danbury, Estherville, Garner, Gilmore City,Hamburg, Humboldt, Jewell, Lansing, Laurens, Livermore, Luverne, Manly,Mapleton, Nashua, Northwood, Onawa, Pocahontas, Renwick, Rose Hill, SiouxRapids, Storm Lake-Alta, Stuart, Wesley, Whiting, Whittemore and Williams.
