Now All I Need Is A Laptop

This is the most ambitious plan of money that I
think will be well spent to hit Los Angeles in years.
The thought of the city covered with wireless
internet access is mind boggling. This is a project
that will greatly benefit the entire city rich or poor.
Thank you Mayor for thinking and acting on our future!



Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa outlined plans Tuesday to blanket Los Angeles with wireless Internet access in 2009, in what would be one of the nation's largest urban Wi-Fi networks.
The L.A. Wi-Fi initiative would give Los Angeles residents, schools, businesses and visitors uninterrupted high-speed Internet connections — for work, research, Web browsing or even phone calls.

More than 300 municipalities nationwide already have launched plans for similar networks based on the Wi-Fi technology that has become popular at coffee shops, bookstores, public parks and countless other so-called hot spots.Such networks are operating in parts of such cities as Anaheim, San Jose, Philadelphia and Portland, Ore."With L.A. Wi-Fi, we are dedicating ourselves to the idea that universal access to technology makes our entire economy stronger," Villaraigosa said.

Municipal Wi-Fi networks cost on average $125,000 per square mile to set up and maintain, depending on building heights and the city's terrain, according to city officials. At that cost, the price tag for covering Los Angeles' 498 square miles could reach more than $62 million.Internet providers and equipment makers have estimated such costs at about $40 for every home covered by the network. That would work out to almost $54 million in Los Angeles.

Villaraigosa said he expected to create a public-private sector partnership and would seek bids as early as this fall. He is forming a working group and plans to hire an expert to iron out details of the ambitious project.The winning bidder would probably pay for the installation, while the city would donate space for antennas on city buildings, light poles and other structures.Wi-Fi network operators could try to make their money back in several ways, including showing ads on the free or low-cost service and promoting their higher-speed offers at market prices.

Some cities also pay to put municipal workers who are in the field, such as police and firefighters, on the system."This is pretty amazing," said Esme Vos, who founded MuniWireless.com, an authority on municipal projects nationwide. "It's a large area, yet an urban project. That's kind of new."




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