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Dunedin Web surfers can soon be untethered

Want to check your e-mail in the park? A St. Petersburg business plans to make it possible.

By MEGAN SCOTT
Published May 7, 2005

DUNEDIN - This north Pinellas burg will be the first in the state to go completely wireless.

And it's not just downtown, or certain neighborhoods. The whole city will be covered.

Commissioners approved a contract Thursday with Citi WiFi Networks, a private company that plans to provide subscriber-only wireless Internet service in Dunedin.

"Dunedin is going someplace where no other city in Florida has gone yet," said Frank McCarthy, president of Citi WiFi Networks, based in St. Petersburg. "They are going to have access to information any time, anywhere."

The company already has set up a pre-subscription signup list on its Web site. The service, which should be running this summer, costs $24.95 a month for residents - less than the typical fees for DSL or cable modem service. Cable modem access runs about $44.95 a month, DSL $29.99.

Citi WiFi Networks will become subscribers' Internet service provider.

The service works on laptop computers equipped with a wireless network card, which runs about $75. Residents who want to use the service at home can rent a box with an antenna to connect their desktop computer to the wireless network.

Wi-Fi, short for "Wireless Fidelity," allows people to connect to the Internet without having to worry about phone lines or cable cords.

Retailers such as Starbucks, Panera Bread and some hotels, bookstores and airports have wireless capability.

Some cities also have wireless service in certain areas, including Tampa, which has a free wireless zone from the Port of Tampa to the waterfront.

"Ultimately, I think we are one of the few cities in the U.S. to be doing this," said Lynn Wargo, president of the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce."

Citi WiFi Networks plans to place transmitters, or access points, across the city. Those transmitters send signals from its headquarters to the points, similar to the way a cell phone works.

The company hopes to eventually bring wireless to all of the Tampa Bay area. McCarthy wants to do the beach communities and downtown St. Petersburg.

"We plan to build this out to as many markets as we can, as fast as we can," McCarthy said. "I keep saying this, "We're past the information age and have entered the connectivity age.' "

Major telecommunication and cable companies, however, are making it harder for cities to provide wireless Internet.

The Legislature was considering proposals to block cities from going wireless. The proposed limits were backed by Verizon Communications and Bright House Networks, who said that government should not compete against private entities. The fate of the legislation was still undecided in the session's last hours Friday.

Megan Scott can be reached at 445-4167 or mscott@sptimes.com

[Last modified May 7, 2005, 01:02:18]