The city of South Bend’s Digital Equity/Open WiFi initiative is making a final big push to expand public wireless connectivity.
The city’s redevelopment commission Thursday approved spending $100,000 in tax incremental financing district property tax dollars to install 11 more public WiFi spots in targeted parks, corridors and community centers. The city had surveyed the public to determine where the new access points will be installed.
Last year the National Digital Inclusion Alliance gave the city is its Digital Trailblazer Award for its work to increase broadband access in public spaces.
Denise Linn Riedl is the city’s chief innovation officer. She said a Connectivity Coalition meets monthly to brainstorm ways to help more people access the internet.
“We sort of learned through the pandemic, internet in the home is important but actually internet everywhere is really important,” Riedl said. “And it’s really important for like our whole ecosystem to be well-connected but that kind of faces the reality of where people live their lives, where kids do their homework, where people apply for jobs. Sometimes they do it while they’re waiting for a Transpo bus and that’s just life.”
