Columbia’s Downtown Community Improvement District plans to conduct a Wi-Fi trial test run in its downtown district beginning May 2013 and going through October.
CID members voted Tuesday to seek proposals for a plan to test out the free service. CID Executive Director Carrie Gartner said the downtown trial locations have not yet been decided, but there are specific areas in mind.
“We’ve outlined a couple of key areas in our request for proposals, and we’re going to make an assessment once we receive those proposals. But right now we’re looking at Broadway, Ninth Street, Courthouse Plaza, and Flat Branch Park,” Gartner said.
Gartner said the service would primarily be offered outdoors because many downtown businesses already offer wi-fi inside their buildings. She also says outdoor Wi-Fi will be useful for residents and visitors during Columbia’s outdoor festivals like Roots N Blues N BBQ Festival and the True/False Film Festival.