What ever happened to the citywide Wi-Fi service that was discussed? Or was it just for downtown?

First, a quick definition of Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi technology allows laptop computers and hand-held devices to access the Internet without wires or plugs. Many hotels and shops offer Wi-Fi environments for the convenience of their customers.

The initial Wi-Fi proposal was not solely for downtown. Barry Martin, community outreach coordinator with the city of Napa, said the idea was to have Wi-Fi throughout the city and it was first proposed by AT&T in October 2006. The pitch was that if Napa allowed AT&T to use the city’s utility poles for its telecommunications equipment, AT&T would give free Wi-Fi access to public safety users, e.g. the police department, fire department, etc.

The police department, for example, could stream video and enormous amounts of data directly from police cruisers to headquarters. But the benefits didn’t stop there. Martin said that the more city of Napa started talking about Wi-Fi access, “the more applications we found,” such as wireless monitoring and reading water tanks without having to physically visit the sites.

The advantage for AT&T? It would have the equipment in place to sell advanced Wi-Fi access and systems to private users in Napa, Martin said.

The technology would have allowed us to boot up as we sat on a bench in Fuller Park or as we waited for the line to move at the drive-through — for a price.

But it never happened.

Who put the kibosh on Wi-Fi? No one, really. According to a Nov. 1, 2007 Register story, the deal fell through because the utility poles in Napa are too short. There simply wasn’t enough room on the poles for Wi-Fi installation.

Bummer.

The whole of Napa, however, is not without Wi-Fi. Access to wireless services can be found in so-called hot spots throughout the city. Hot spots are typically found at hotels, cafes, grocery stores and airports. Keep an eye out next time you’re strolling about; many businesses display Wi-Fi signs on their windows.

If hot spots allow Wi-Fi access, then who cares if the entire city doesn’t have it? It’s a question of mobility, Martin said. Wi-Fi here and there doesn’t help emergency responders, for example.

The Wi-Fi issue has not been revisited in the last couple of years, according to Martin. He said there probably would be citywide Wi-Fi, “but what form it will take is speculation.”

Losing my connection, I had better sign off ...

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