By now you have probably heard about Bill White's grand new plan for some of that payout money the City of Houston received from Earthlink after they defaulted on their plan for a city-wide wifi system. He wants to build 10 wifi "bubbles" in low-income areas.
Houston mayor plans 10 'bubbles' of free WiFi
I couldn't more against this plan. It's not that I do not believe that we should be providing these kinds of services to people in need, but free Internet service is not the obstacle that is keeping low-income families off the Internet. They need computers, and while HP is offering deals for people in these areas to get an affordable computer for their homes, I just don't see how this is going to be a good use of $3.5 million.
No, these bubbles should be built in areas where there is a greater need by all Houstonians. Namely, the major economic hubs of this city: Downtown, Texas Medical Center, Galleria, Greenway Plaza and, possibly, the Houston Ship Channel. It would be used, if correctly configured, by a majority of Houstonians whether it be for their professional or personal needs. I'd reckon that a Downtown "bubble" alone would be worth $3.5 million based on the number of people who would be able to use it. Plus, it would give universal access to anyone who needs it in areas that draw the most local residents, who not only have Internet access, but truly need it. And, doesn't it make more sense to put this free wi-fi where the people are?
I'm all for wi-fi for those than cannot afford Internet, but paying this much money on what will be a small number of users seems like wasteful spending. Let's find money that will get computers in these homes before we bring in the wi-fi. Until then, you're putting the cart before the horse.
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