Published: Jun 17, 2004
Modified: Jun 17, 2004 8:38 AM

By EMILY ALMAS, Staff Writer

Downtowns get Internet savvy
Free wireless Internet access could attract

more professionals to Triangle 'hot spots.'

Raleigh, Durham, Apex and other cities are bringing a whole new meaning to efforts to turn downtowns into hot spots.

They and other cities plan to offer free wireless Internet access in downtown districts with the hope of luring more people and businesses. People with laptop computers will be able to use the Internet for free in places with wireless connections, known as "hot spots."

"There are a lot of young professionals that are dependent on their computers, and they take them everywhere," said Margaret Mullen, president of the Downtown Raleigh Alliance. "Wireless is the trend for downtowns."

The Raleigh City Council approved a project Tuesday to bring wireless service to Fayetteville Street Mall. The Durham City Council will vote Monday on whether to install wireless services in that city's Five Points area. The service in downtown Apex starts July 2.

Downtown districts are increasingly in competition with malls and suburban shopping centers. Wireless Internet, backers say, is a new tool to attract economic growth and development.

"We never expect people to come downtown solely to get online, but it's one more reason to go downtown rather than going to the mall," said Mark Spencer, president of 802 Link, a wireless Internet company based in Mount Airy that installed the equipment for that town and Apex.

The Triangle is not the first area of the state to use wireless Internet in hopes of revitalizing downtowns. Winston-Salem launched free wireless Internet service in its downtown in March 2003.

"The service goes a long way as far as marketing and image," said Dennis Newman, chief information officer for Winston-Salem. "It, amongst many other things, really improved downtown."

Some cities have found that costs to place wireless Internet are low and potential payoffs high.

Equipment and installation costs for Fayetteville Street Mall will total less than $4,000, and service costs will run about $295 a month. Durham expects to pay about $3,000 for equipment and $2,100 a year for service. BellSouth will cover the costs of monthly service in downtown Apex, where equipment costs and set-up are less than $4,000.

The service also will attract new residents downtown, some say.

"Cities today are competing vigorously for professionals," said Charles E. Connell, executive director of the nonprofit Wireless Public Internet Access Project, based in Statesville. "This technology in an urban setting has a tremendous advantage for the urban environment."

Service in phases

Internet service on Fayetteville Street Mall will be available in phases, beginning in August with the 300 block. Service will be expanded in sections in coming months. The signal can be picked up on the street and in some storefronts, although it cannot penetrate buildings.

Users with personal digital assistants or laptops equipped with wireless cards will be able to pick up the signal, relayed from a rooftop antenna to a router placed at street level to the device.

The proposed service for Durham's Five Points area would become available as soon as the City Council approves the plan and the equipment is installed. The city already owns the equipment and has a contract for service with Windchannel Communications in Raleigh, which is also handling the installation of downtown Raleigh's service.

With an antenna already placed on the Number 1 Station in downtown Apex, users within a three-block radius of the station should be able to pick up a signal when the service starts in a few weeks.

Many expect the service to become available in more cities.

"Those downtowns which don't offer this service are going to be at a competitive disadvantage," said Bill Kalkhof, president of Downtown Durham Inc., a nonprofit economic development group working with the city on the project.

Cities potentially could use the wireless technology to monitor security cameras, said Jim Crawford, vice president of business development for Windchannel Communications. The Internet could provide police with live images of a certain area, for example.

In the meantime, Suzanne Griffin, manager of Port City Java in downtown Raleigh, said she thinks wireless service will attract customers and commerce to the Fayetteville Street area.

"It'll help bring downtown up to speed," she said.

Staff writer Emily Almas can be reached at 829-8927 or ealmas@newsobserver.com.