There was an announcement yesterday that Riverbank State Park (which spans the Hudson from 138th to 145th Street) will be the first New York State Park to have free public WiFi available to all:
LINK. We're kind of thinking this is a great public service to have but does it contradict the entire point of going to a park? The plan came together with the help of Columbia University, Per Scholas and the Digital Divide Partnership, the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation but it's unclear if service starts immediately or not. Our big wish list would be to have free internet at public places that one spends a lot of aimless time waiting for things to happen such as train stations, bus depots and subway stops.
Don't get me wrong; I like a "freebee" just as much as the next guy. But I question the motivation behind the free wifi. I wonder if it were not for the Columbia expansion into Manhattanville would this come about at this time? One wonders if Columbia isn't considering that their students & faculty who will use the park would welcome the free amenity??
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand I do know that for some years now the Parks dept was considering free wifi for parks.
Uhm
Not quite. There are actually a bunch of parks in Lower Manhattan with free Wifi. Bowling Green Park and City Hall Park both have free Wifi.
ReplyDeleteYour title should read: First State Park as your first line indicates.