Wireless Woodstock
Applicant Name
Jon Spector
Applicant Organization
Economic Development Commission
Email Address
Phone Number
802-457-9109
Mailing Address
16 The Green
Woodstock
VT
05091
Organization Website
Grant Request Summary
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NOTE: THIS PRE-APPLICATION HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN BY THE APPLICANT
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The purpose of this grant is to restore high-speed public wifi service to the core downtown areas, from the hardware store on the East End to the Rec Center on the western edge of the Village. The original plans for Wireless Woodstock were partially implemented but the full rollout of the technology was intended to proceed in three phases, and these were not completed. Today, while a handful of hotspots do exist Wireless Woodstock is not providing significant wifi coverage to the Village.
It should be noted that since the inception of Wireless Woodstock cell phone service has expanded dramatically - both in terms of areas covered and data speeds - and as a result providing a public wifi service may be less important to visitors and residents than it was seven or eight years ago when Wireless Woodstock first came onto the scene. We will attempt to determine if there is still demand for public wifi, and if so whether or not meeting this demand will drive economic and community development, before submitting a final application to the EDC at the end of February.
If demand still exists we hope to engage with the High School to provide an employment and educational opportunity for students to act as network operators, and our grant request will include a small set-aside for funding this educational initiative for the first three years.
The technical specs for a network rollout will be developed for the final application, but we anticipate the funding requirements would be in the range of $25,000 to $35,000.
Project Budget
$25,000+
Desired Grant Amount
$25,000+
Other Funding Sources
None
Project Timeframe
Completed by the end of 2022
How will this project benefit the economic and community development of Woodstock?
If cell phone service is still not sufficient to provide the vast majority of residents and visitors with necessary bandwidth (still to be determined), providing a free public wifi network will make the shopping experience, and the overall experience of visiting Woodstock, more productive and enjoyable, and in doing so will increase the likelihood that visitors will be attracted to Woodstock, and residents will remain here.
Which EDC Working Grouop Objectives does your project best support?
Downtown Physical Rejuvenation (Improving facilities and public spaces in the downtown area)
Other Objectives
Project Collaborations
We have had preliminary discussions with the faculty at the High School to consider ways for students to serve as network operators, and we will need to finalize these arrangements before proceeding with the grant.
Additional Comments