With nearly $1.65 million provided by the Knight Foundation in combination with state and federal funds, a fee-based wireless internet system that once covered downtown will be reactivated in conjunction with new coverage areas in the East End, Cardinal Valley and the so-called “College Town” area between UK and downtown, providing free access to any wireless-capable device.
“An engaged and informed citizenry is an important indicator of a vibrant, healthy community,” said Lisa Adkins, CEO of the Blue Grass Community Foundation, which received the grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and will serve as nonprofit partner for the project and help the city engage the community.
In a release, Newberry likened Internet access to the expansion of the country’s interstate system in the ’50s and ’60s, by allowing for more commerce and bringing the nation closer together. “It will give businesses a tool that is essential to successfully compete in the global marketplace and it will give many citizens a tool that is essential to successfully compete in the classroom and in the workforce,” Newberry said in a release.
State and Federal funds of $1.1 million are being used in the program that will allow public safety officers better access to their databases needed for use in their daily duties.
Expected to be operating by summer, the network evolved from work started in the spring by the Lexington Broadband Coalition, a group made up of city, state, university, non-profit and business leaders in hopes of supporting public safety and expanding broadband access in underserved areas. The project will be jointly administered by a public-private partnership that includes LFUCG, the state, the University of Kentucky, the Knight Foundation and the Blue Grass Community Foundation, which will work with citizens to help them take advantage of the network, according to the release.
“This grant allows us to play a role in positioning the community to take advantage of the broadband network – to help inform and educate about applications and keep the lines of communication open regarding progress and opportunities,” BGCF’s Adkins said in the release. “And it ties in directly with the Legacy Center’s work on the Legacy Trail and in the East End.”
Eventually the group looks to expand service along the Legacy Trail which, when completed later this year, will stretch from the East End to the Kentucky Horse Park.
The Mayor plans on utilizing business and civic leaders to help develop a strategy to launch the network this summer and plan a public awareness campaign. “The opportunities the network presents to Lexington are unparalleled,” Newberry said in the release.
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