All posts in the topic Broadband in Central Ohio (Short link)
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- There are 3 posts — by 2 authors — in this topic.
- Latest post made by Peter Shane at May 16 15:10 UTC
I recently came across the following story about an award to Scot Rourke, CEO of the OneCommunity project (www.onecommunity.org) in Northeast Ohio. http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS155456+25-Mar-2008+PRN20080325 The story reads: "As OneCommunity's CEO, Rourke led the successful effort to develop an ultra-broadband community network serving first the city of Cleveland and then the entire Northeast Ohio region. The effort began in 2002 when Cleveland's Case Western Reserve University named Lev Gonick as its new CIO. Believing that the region's nonprofits should play a more active role in its recovery from industrial decline, Gonick assembled a group of community leaders that founded OneCleveland, OneCommunity's predecessor. Rourke joined the effort, turning this vision into reality. Under Rourke's leadership, OneCommunity forged partnerships with the region's telephone and cable carriers. The OneCommunity network has expanded and will soon connect 1,500 schools, libraries, governments, hospitals and universities, cost-effectively delivering ultra broadband that enables applications such as distance learning and telemedicine." I am wondering how our region compares. Are there central Ohio efforts comparable to this? I think there's a municipal wi-fi project going on in Dublin. Any others? Who is leading the effort to give our region the broadband capacity (and relevant public policies) that we will need for the future? Peter Shane Columbus
I'm not sure if there are any groups doing this in Central Ohio. Broadband Ohio is a state initiative (an expansion/pass thru of Taft's OH1 rebranded for Strickland) which aims at providing last mile broadband connectivity to all Ohioans (particularly those in Appalachia) but this is not the same as free community broadband. This contract would be available to local governments and it's agents to make this happen but there would still be a cost at some level. Many communities have backed away from providing WiFi on the basis that it is technologically difficult to support (WiFi hasn't matured enough for reliable broadband use throughout municipalites without significant cost) and secondly that the municipalities get a hard fought battle from the Telco/Cable providers in the area who say that the free broadband is harming their ability to do business. Depending on what is at risk (jobs, etc.) by pissing off those companies some cities pull back and some go forward. Even in affluent communities (I live in UA and eccentially have one option [Time Warner] for hardwired broadband) selection and availability are sometimes hard to come by. As cell based broadband gets better and less expensive I see fewer and fewer public entities willing to provide this service so it is imperative that, at least for the sake of lower income populations, nonprofits consider working this angle to help bridge the digital divide. Thanks for pointing out this organization, it is really inspiring. Andrew http://elephantsonbicycles.com
Another interesting commentary on this topic. Peter Shane Columbus <http://www.muniwireless.com/2008/05/15/northeast-ohio-muni-wireless-brings-together-education-city-officials/>Guest commentary: Northeast Ohio muni wireless project brings together education, city officials Cathy Horton | <http://www.muniwireless.com/2008/05/15>May 15, 2008 at 1:55 am | <http://www.muniwireless.com/2008/05/15/northeast-ohio-muni-wireless-brings-together-education-city-officials/#comments>0 Comments This week The Chronicle of Higher Education published a story entitled: Struggling Communities Turn to Colleges: Small private institutions work to help ailing local economies. The article discusses the value of collaboration between higher education and local government. Author, Karin Fischer, reports that civic leaders say they are looking to colleges not simply to spruce up their city centers but also to help position them in an economy that values smarts more than strength. She goes on to report: In old mill towns and declining manufacturing centers, in the Rust Belts former company towns and in the rural South, small, private liberal arts institutions like Kings [College Wilkes-Barre] are assuming a greater responsibility for community and economic development. They and their alumni are raising money to purchase abandoned buildings. They are relocating college facilities, like bookstores and residence halls, to buy up urban cores. They are working to better connect faculty experts with local entrepreneurs. This important trend speaks to what the Beta Strategy Group understands about Muni Wireless. In our last <http://www.muniwireless.com/2008/05/08/economic-value-and-collaboration-in-municipal-wireless/>article, we suggested that of the broadband deployments we are engaged in, most involve solving complex community and economic challenges. Nothing is more complex than re-inventing the business communities of our nation through information technology and entrepreneurship. Right now, we are involved in deploying what will be the first Muni Wireless Broadband deployment in Northeast Ohio, a network that will serve the city and the local college, as well as its surrounding cities and county offices. Thus, despite the ongoing dialogue concerning the validity of broadband deployment, smart cities and colleges in our path understand that the objective of drawing students and businesses to state-of-the-art technology centers will be the defining component of the future of their Main Street landscape. For example, in Painesville, Ohio, City Manager Rita McMahon and local officials at Lake Erie College are building the exact case study called for by Ms. Fischer in her timely article. Painesvilles community has embraced a broadband strategy to advance not only community safety and improved city operations, but the network connects with Lake Erie College. Lake Erie College, a recipient of the Kaufman Entrepreneurship Award, intends on building student businesses and sees the value of keeping these businesses in the local community. Painesville and Northeast Ohio have been in the forefront of broadband deployment and have become examples of successful technology roadmaps. But what is not always apparent is that the region receives the value of collaboration. The success of Muni Wireless is not just about deploying the technology or creating a new utility. The true value and allure rests in the programs that shape and envision an economic future by leveraging and raising the intellectual value of the surrounding community. In other words, the biggest challenge for Muni Wireless is not technological; it is about building community economic models that provide for broad inclusion. This means that city leaders need to identify all of the stakeholders in a deployment whilst structuring a business model that accounts for the value of the participants assets, whether they are technological or intellectual. These are exciting times, and I encourage you to get started. My colleagues and I welcome your questions and commentary and we will research and provide you with the best possible, unbiased input. Peter M. Shane Jacob E. Davis and Jacob E. Davis II Chair in Law and Director, Project on Law and Democratic Development The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law 55 West 12th Avenue Columbus, OH 43210 Executive Director, Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy www.knightcomm.org Phone: 614-688-3014 FAX: 614-688-8422 URL: http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/user/pshane E-Mail: <email obscured> or <email obscured>