HomeMy WebLinkAboutInfo Item - Free Wi-Fi Within P.D. � �
>
,�
��� ��
�i CITY OF PALM DESERT
. 1. . t :
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
Staff Report
REQUEST: INFORMATION ITEM RELATIVE TO WI-FI SYSTEM WITHIN
PALM DESERT
SUBMITTED BY: Doug Van Gelder, Director of Information Systems
DATE: June 26, 2008
DISCUSSION:
City Council directed staff to research Free Wi-Fi within Palm Desert.
Recommendation
At this time Staff recommends against implementing a City Wide Wi-Fi Network.
Wireless technologies and standards are getting ready to change. A smaller project
such as EI Paseo is a more reasonable project until the new technologies and
standards are established. If council wishes for the EI Paseo Hotspot project to move
ahead, staff recommends that Council appropriate $85,000 to establish and build a
wireless hotspot on EI Paseo from Highway 111 on the east and Highway 111 on the
west.
Municipai Wi-Fi Definition:
Municipal wireless network (Municipal Wi-Fi, Muni Wi-Fi or Muni-Fi) is the concept of
turning an entire city into a Wireless Access Zone (WAZ), with the ultimate goal of
making wireless access to the Internet a universal service. This is usually done by
providing municipal broadband via Wi-Fi to large parts or all of a municipal area by
deploying a wireless mesh network. The typical deployment design uses hundreds of
routers deployed outdoors, often on utility poles. The operator of the network acts as a
wireless internet service provider (ISP).
Hotspot Definition
Hotspots are a specific geographic location in which an access point provides public
wireless broadband network services to mobile visitors through a Wide Area Network
(WAN). Hotspots are often located in heavily populated places such as airports,
libraries, convention centers, and hotels. Hotspots typically have a short range of
access. While equipment costs may be relatively low the installation costs of each
hotspot can be high. Suitable locations need to be found, there needs to be a power
source, connection to a T1, DSL, Cable, or some type of WAN backbone. There may be
annual access fees for mounting access points on utility poles or other suitable
locations if not owned by the builder of the network.
Page 1 of 3
Existinq Free Citv Facilitv Hotspots
Civic Center — Lobbies and Conference Rooms (June 2008)
Visitor Center— Conference Room and Front Lobby
Desert Willow — Entire Club House
Library — Entire Facility
Henderson Building — Conference Rooms (Future)
Parkview Room 119 (CVAG, requires password to access)
A Tale of Two Cities — Corona and Riverside
City of Corona
In a contract approved in 2006, Metro-Fi would build a Municipal Wi-Fi that would have
covered the 40-square-mile city. Metro-Fi would have installed the equipment, covered
operating expenses, and paid the City of Corona $18,000 a year for installing the
devices on City light poles. Metro-Fi would receive its revenue from banner ads running
across the screen publicizing local businesses on the free version or from a $19.95
monthly fee from subscribers that didn't want the ads. But in 2007, Metro-Fi changed
their plans and asked the City for $450,000 over a five year period to help cover their
expenses. The City refused to pay and Metro-Fi has since walked away from the project
leaving the City of Corona with a non-functioning system.
City of Riverside
The city of Riverside has contracted with AT&T for equipment and services to build a
Municipal-Wi-Fi network in 54 of its 86-square-mile City for a five year period. The City
has offered access to City facilities and power at no charge. The vendor will be able to
sell on-line advertising and premium services. The City has made a commitment to be
the anchor tenant using this network for data services. They will be paying a total of $4
million over the next five years to AT&T for these services. There is no revenue sharing
with the City. The project is scheduled to begin use in June of 2008.
Both Riverside and Corona have their own utilities and access to utility poles for
mounting Wi-Fi equipment.
Survey
In a quick phone survey the cities of Indian Wells, Rancho Mirage, Cathedral City, and
La Quinta were contacted about any current or future wireless projects. None of these
cities contacted have public wireless access (Hotspots) except at their libraries nor had
any plans for creating wireless hotspots.
Costs:
The city of Riverside is installing 30-35 access points per square mile. Santa Monica
spent an approximate cost of $6,000 per site to install 15 hot spots. (The City
purchased the products and hired a cable contractor to install equipment.) Using these
numbers we can estimate the cost to cover the City of Palm Desert or selected areas
(Hotspots).
Page 2 of 3
City Wide Estimate
^Total Area of Palm Desert Average Access Points Total Access Points
per Square Mile Needed to Cover Palm
Desert
27 s uare miles 32 864
;_ _Cost per Access Point Total Access Points Total Installation Estimate
� $6,000 864 $5,184,000 ;
EI Paseo Estimate (Create a Hotspot from Hwy 111 to Hwy 111)
The length of the area to cover is roughly a two mile stretch of EI Paseo, running from
Hwy 111 on its east end and again Hwy 111 on the west end. (It should be noted that
the access points will provide coverage up to a thousand feet in every direction.
Residents living in the vicinity of an access point will be able to connect to the network
as well as the businesses and visitors to the EI Paseo business district.)To figure true
costs of establishing an estimate, a company specializing in installing and setup would
have to be hired. The vendor would conduct a site inspection to determine the locations
of access units and other physical requirements of installing the access units (how
many units would really be needed, power and WAN requirements for appropriate
bandwidth, etc.). But an educated guess can provide a rough estimate to make EI
Paseo a Wi-Fi hotspot. Using the numbers above and a guesstimate as to how many
access points would be required we can come up with some rough costs.
Access Point Needed Costs per Access Point Total Setup of Access
Points
� 12-14 $6,000 $72,000 — $84,000
Recurring Costs
It would be hard to estimate recurring monthly costs at this time. Direction would need
to be given as to how much bandwidth would be provided to each free user of the
network (most networks limit the amount of bandwidth any one individual user can use),
the speed of connection between the access points and the WAN/Internet, who would
manage the equipment and provide support, total number of access points supported,
and if there would be a premium service offered. If City staff were to support the
network it would require staff to be available 24 x 7.
Sub itted By: Approval:
Doug n Gelder Carlos L. ega
Director of Information Systems City Manager
aul S. Gibson
Director of Finance
Page 3 of 3
CONSENT CALENDAR
X-V INFORMATIONAL ITEMS:
1. Research on Free Wi-Fi Within Palm Desert.
CITY COUNCIL CTIO�:
APPROVED ��� DENZED ��,
REC�IVED OTHER
MgSTZNG DATE__._����'
AYES: ��r � 'e � . n5c
NOES: N�..�
ABSENT: ��Gne_ ,��
ABSTAIN: � �;��
VERIFIED EiY• ����-�
Original on�File withJCity Clerk's Off�ce
�' By Minute Motion: 1) Appropriate $85,000 to establish
and build a wireless hotspot on E1 Paseo from Highway 111
oal the east t� xi�hway Ill on the west; 2) authorize staff
to mov� forward with the project. 5-0