New Orleans is halfway done with a wireless network in less than a year (and while cleaning up after a hurricane no less!), but Seattle is thinking long haul. We’re discussing a city-wide high speed broadband network by 2015. Doesn’t it seem like such a techie city would have started on this a few years ago?
We’ve only been discussing the plan for the viaduct, our 1-in-20-odds-of-collapsing-in-the-next-ten-years waterfront highway, for 5 years now. I expect a draft viaduct replacement plan to be ready for high speed download in 2015.
There was talk of Redmond-wide city wifi, but I haven’t kept up on it. I know MS provides free wifi for all of Marymoor park and I think the MS campus has some public wifi (it might still all be private protected WiFi, so I don’t know for sure, just going on things that I’ve overheard) .
Since the Google guys are invading Seattle (It’s easier to hire away smart Microsofties if they don’t have to buy Mt. View real estate first), are doing free wifi for Mt. View, maybe they’ll give us a free wi-fi as a ploy to sell more ads and annoy Microsoft at the same time. 😉
There was a big contorversy recently about doing all of the parks in Kirkland. I think the City is moving forward with that, but some vocal residents are not happy that the City is spending money on this “upgrade”.
Surely within 8 years, all businesses in Seattle will be replaced by coffeshops, which usually offer free wireless..so no need for city intervention, just let the market sort it out. 🙂
But seriously, wi-fi by 2015? Won’t that kind of be about as relevant as stringing copper wire everywhere? Do we really think that wi-fi’s going to be the standard in use 8 years from now?
Alan, you’re right. Wireless should be here in the next 3 years. Planning for technology 8 years out seems crazy! Shouldn’t we just lay really fast cable all over the city and figure out the wireless system when it will take less than 2 years?