Personal tools
You are here: Home → Vision, Structure, & Actions → Wireless Washtenaw
 

Wireless Washtenaw

Action Outcome

Blanket the county’s 720 square miles with wireless internet service and provide access to every resident, school, community organization, business, and visitor in Washtenaw County.

Status

  • 20/20 Communications has built three pilots (Ann Arbor, Saline and the Village of Manchester serving 100 square miles). $10 M needed to build out the remaining 620 square miles.
  • Grants will be sought from the National Recovery and Reinvestment Act as they become available in the next few months.

Action Champions

(Wireless Washtenaw Steering Committee Members)
Tom Crawford, Chief Financial Officer, City of Ann Arbor
Dan Rainey, Information Technology Director, City of Ann Arbor
David Behen, Vice President of Public Sector Practice, GDI Infotech
Rich Sheridan, President, Menlo Innovations
Ken Unterbrink, Supervisor, Lima Township
Bill Shell, Information Technology Director, EMU
Derrick Jackson, Director, Community Engagement, Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office
Andy Palms, Information Technology Communications Director, UoM

Action Manager

James McFarlane, Washtenaw County

For information contact James McFarlane at mcfarlanej@ewashtenaw.org or visit the website at http://wireless.ewashtenaw.org/.

Action Description

Access to cutting edge technology is needed in addition to facilities.  Fiber Optic in the urban core and wireless internet in the entire region will make us stand out from a competitive position and increase the amount of entrepreneurial thinking and networks.

The Wireless Washtenaw project is designed to facilitate the deployment of a high-speed wireless internet network throughout Washtenaw County.  This project is a collaborative initiative where organizations such as Eastern Michigan University, the University of Michigan, Washtenaw County’s Local Units of Government, Internet2, the State of Michigan and several residents have provided leadership and resources to ensure the project is successful. Wireless Washtenaw’s business model allows 20/20 Communications to place broadcasting equipment on public assets in exchange for a free level of service which can be utilized by all of our residents. Residents also have the ability to buy higher bandwidth services for fee.

The Goals of Wireless Washtenaw include:

  • Blanket the County’s 720 square miles with wireless internet service and provide access to every resident, school, community organization, business, and visitor in Washtenaw County. A wireless infrastructure throughout Washtenaw County will provide seamless access to web pages, email, and other internet services anywhere in the County. 
  • Provide “free” and “for fee” internet access to every resident, business, and visitor in the County.
  • Address the digital divide and underserved areas in Washtenaw County.
  • Enhance the Washtenaw County community by creating public-private partnerships and a new spirit of collaboration to improve the quality of life.
 

Action Update

Since 2005, Washtenaw County has been forming partnerships with local units of governments and universities in an attempt to collect assets that can be used for the wireless deployment. In September of 2006, Washtenaw County signed a Provider Agreement with 20/20 Communications to build out the network. The agreement specifies that the County shall be completely built out by the end of 2007.

20/20 Communications has built three pilots in Ann Arbor, Saline and the Village of Manchester. They currently serve close to 100 square miles and have 540 paying customers with thousands of free subscribers.  20/20 has spent the last 1.5 years seeking funding to build out the remaining 620 square miles within Washtenaw County.  Due to challenges of municipal Wifi projects and the state of the economy, 20/20 has been unsuccessful in obtaining the necessary funding to complete the project. The rural deployment is estimated at $2,000,000 with the total County wide build out at an estimated $10,000,000 using a mix of 800 MGHZ, WiFI and PreWiMax. The project will not expand further until additional funding is solidified.

There is potential funding available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  The NTIA (National Telecommunications and Information) and the RUS (Rural Utilities Service) departments have a combined 7.2 billion for broadband projects. This funding is available for constructing and operating “ready to go” wired and wireless broadband systems.  The application for RUS grants will be available June 12th.  Awards will be submitted Q1 of 2010.  NTIA funding should be available for submission sometime within the next 30-60 days.

 

Reporting metrics and an updated project plan will be solidified in conjunction with receiving funds to complete the project.       

Document Actions