---start copy/paste--- 'The system, which Chief Information Officer Carl Kaiser estimated would cost as much as $500 million, would be developed and managed by a private sector partner. The city would provide access to its fiber optic infrastructure, allow some 900 antennae to be mounted on telephone poles, and issue bonds to finance it. The wireless service would be made available to all residents through a tier-based pricing structure and offered free at access centers throughout the city, including libraries, kiosks, and fire stations. “The pricing model will be competitive,” he said. The city would receive a portion of the profits generated by the system, which would be governed by a board consisting of representatives from government, business, citizens, and other stakeholders, Kaiser said.' ---end copy/paste--- Looks to me like this is a continuation of the previous pay-to-use access talked about in the past. Maybe they are trying to recreate Chaska.net in Minneapolis. I wonder how much they are thinking issuing in bonds...the whole $500 million? That pricetag is about the same as for some of the football stadium plans. http://www.stadiumsofnfl.com/future/VikingsStadium.htm That board sounds like a rulemaking board for the system that would approve pricing structures and/or rate hikes for wireless services. I think Qwest has something like that with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. http://www.puc.state.mn.us -hk -----full text follows----- City Takes First Step Toward Citywide Wireless System (Nov. 1) A City Council committee on Monday authorized city staff to take the first steps toward developing a system that could bring broadband wireless Internet access to the entire city. The system, which Chief Information Officer Carl Kaiser estimated would cost as much as $500 million, would be developed and managed by a private sector partner. The city would provide access to its fiber optic infrastructure, allow some 900 antennae to be mounted on telephone poles, and issue bonds to finance it. Kaiser said he hoped to issue a Request for Proposals by next month and negotiate a contract by the second quarter of 2005. “It’s a formidable challenge,” Kaiser told members of the Ways and Means Committee. “But four potential partners are willing to move this forward.” More than 20 cities nationwide are in various stages of planning or implementing this sort of wireless service, he added. Most of them are planning to own the service, but Kaiser said it was “not in the best interest of the city” to implement, manage, and service such a system. The wireless service would be made available to all residents through a tier-based pricing structure and offered free at access centers throughout the city, including libraries, kiosks, and fire stations. “The pricing model will be competitive,” he said. The city would receive a portion of the profits generated by the system, which would be governed by a board consisting of representatives from government, business, citizens, and other stakeholders, Kaiser said. That governance structure raised some issues for Council Member Barret Lane (Ward 13), who wondered whether the city would be able to “pull the plug” on the deal if it was not organized as a franchise arrangement like that which governs cable TV. Kaiser replied that the governance structure would allow the city to influence the service. Lane also said he was concerned about the city taking on such a massive project at a time when it has plenty of other challenges. “There are lots of other things on our plates,” he said. “I’m leery of getting into a whole other business here and letting that distract us from our other business.” The committee voted unanimously to authorize Kaiser to put out a Request for Proposals. He will return with a business plan in the weeks ahead. _______________________________________________ Twin Cities Wireless Users Group Mailing List - Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota http://www.tcwug.org tcwug-list at tcwug.org https://mailman.real-time.com/mailman/listinfo/tcwug-list