Celebration at opening of Frontier storefront

Frontier Communications will celebrate the opening of a new retail store in Crescent City on Saturday at 356 H Street.

Everyone is welcome to stop by for free snacks, live music, classic cars, an appearance by Santa and face-painting from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.. The official ribbon cutting is slated for 11 a.m., followed by music from Camryn Ridgley and Scott Perry.

The new store is an attempt to bring customer service back home, rather than relying on distant call centers, said manager Heather Sterns.

Frontier is one of the country’s largest rural telephone and Internet service providers, with customers in 27 states. Previously, the closest retail location was in Coos Bay.

“Customers will be able to come into a store and get local help. They can come in and get billing help, make payments, whatever little issue they might have they can come in and meet someone face to face,” Sterns said.

A former Del Norte High School student, the opening also marks a sort of homecoming for her.

“I’d been in Sonoma County 20 years. I’d been laid off twice in five years and when I went out to look for work I was one of hundreds applying. I was feeling the frustration of the bad economy and overpopulation,” she said. “I’ve wanted to move back to Del Norte County for a while and get out of the rat race.”