economic development

Economic development top priority for Central Coast Broadband Consortium

“Broadband connectivity is the new deepwater seaport,” said Mary Ann Leffel, chair of the Central Coast Broadband Consortium’s (CCBC) economic development expert group and president of the Monterey County Business Council (MCBC). But it’s more than just a visit by a cruise ship. It’s about attracting and keeping businesses and creating jobs.

Economic development is the primary goal of the CCBC, explained Nancy Martin, CCBC executive team member and executive director of MCBC as she opened the discussion at the CCBC’s Get Connected conference she organized in Seaside on 6 December 2012.… More

Mobile carriers' broadband coverage claims challenged by ISPs

Availability maps submitted by mobile telephone carriers are a problem for local Internet companies trying to expand and improve broadband service in California’s central coast region.

Representatives from six Internet service providers – Central Coast Internet, Charter, Cruzio, Razzolink, Redshift and Surfnet – participated in a workshop yesterday organized by the Central Coast Broadband Consortium (CCBC). A number of concerns were discussed, including construction permits, funding, and coordination with other utility and local government projects.… More

Consensus on broadband priorities, solutions emerges from CCBC conference

A series of workshops organized by the Central Coast Broadband Consortium drew about three dozen representatives from Internet service providers, local governments, economic development agencies and other companies and organizations interested in improving broadband access and infrastructure.

The first workshop brought together public works, planning and information technology managers from Salinas, Gonzales, Santa Cruz, Seaside, Watsonville, and Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito Counties. They reviewed the CCBC’s policy development and infrastructure inventory projects, and discussed how to make it easier to anticipate and meet future broadband needs.… More

California cities upsetting FCC commissioner Ajit Pai

“It was Milton Friedman who recognized years ago that the market provides a better way,” said Ajit Pai, who became an FCC commissioner in May as a Republican nominee. “Our deregulatory approach to wireless has been a success.”

Speaking to MobileCon attendees this afternoon, Pai focused on roadblocks that government can create for telecommunications development, contrasting the lightly regulated wireless sector with the more intrusive approach to wireline carriers taken by the FCC and the 50 states.… More

San Leandro beats Google's Kansas City broadband speeds

Press release from the City of San Leandro:

San Leandro, Not Google, Is Writing The Next Chapter Of The Internet


Source: Lit San Leandro
“As Google attempts to grab the headlines with its announcement tomorrow of a fiber initiative for Kansas City that will offer users connection speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second, Mayor Stephen Cassidy of San Leandro announced that San Leandro is staking its claim as the fastest city in the nation.
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San Leandro joins elite group of dark fiber cities


Source: Lit San Leandro

Lit San Leandro is putting fiber in the ground. A launch party attracted about a hundred out-of-town development prospects and local business people who heard about the project’s big picture benefits and the specific real estate opportunities it creates. The Hayward Daily Review and San Leandro Patch have good articles on the event. Patrick Kennedy’s Lit San Leandro blog also has good updates and pictures.
Speakers at the event included Sean Tario, the CEO of Open Spectrum Inc.
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