Windham staff and elected officials are reviewing the possibility of public access wireless internet, something that might be necessary during the pandemic.
The Windham Town Council discussed the issue during its meeting last week.
“Some towns and cities in Connecticut are looking to provide townwide internet access, especially during the pandemic,” Windham Councilor Randall Prose said.
“It supports people working virtually and many of the students that possibly cannot afford internet access.”
Prose said the school district is issuing hot-spot packs to students without steady internet access.
However, townwide WiFi could be beneficial. It supports people working virtually and many of the students that possibly cannot afford internet access, especially if the coronavirus worsens again and all students are learning from home fulltime.
Windham Town Manager Jim Rivers said this project is not a new idea.
“For a few months now we’ve been talking about it at town hall,” Rivers said. “I’ve had a number of conversations with (IT Director) Bryan Hathaway. I’ve done some reading myself.”
Rivers said town-wide WiFi access is typically only done in cities where there is a population density that makes it worthwhile.
The signal would be broadcasted by hotspot devices that have a range of 150 or 200 feet.
It would be difficult, however, to carry the utility into the rural parts of the Windham villages.
“ It’s essentially a new utility,” Rivers said. “ It can be done. It is done in some of the larger cities.”
Rivers said the project could be pricey.
In Hartford, for example, city leaders have pledged $ 3.8 million to set up public internet access in low- income neighborhoods.
In addition, upkeep for those devices is estimated to be about $ 100,000 annually.
Councilor Rose Reyes said this project could address some of the housing complexes, like Windham Heights, Village Heights and Memorial Drive.
“It’s something that I think a lot of us would like to start working toward,” said Councilor Dawn Niles. Currently, the Windham Town Hall, Willimantic Public Library and Windham Public Schools have WiFi access.
The council decided to forward the issue to the town council public safety, public works, environment, culture and recreation subcommittee. The committee meets next on Sept. 8.
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