Smart Meters Come to Downtown Jacksonville

mtraininjax · October 14, 2009, 04:10:15 PM

Would you concur that the Community centers and senior centers are not?

jbroadglide · October 14, 2009, 04:12:07 PM

No because I don't know that to be a fact. But give me a day and I can likely get an answer.

mtraininjax · October 14, 2009, 04:12:38 PM

OK. Would like to know.

stjr · October 14, 2009, 05:26:47 PM

Wifi? Advanced parking meters? More opportunities for free goodies. Let's get advertising sponsors for these too. Also, some for the police and fire pension fund! And, the City Council could be sponsored by the development community. This was a great idea. Let's keep it going. We should have a commercial sponsor for every line in the City budget and then we could close City government and do away with taxes. Maybe it will work out better than the stadium naming rights we now are giving up $5 million a year in bed tax to cover.

stjr · October 14, 2009, 05:54:40 PM

Quote from: stephendare on October 14, 2009, 05:28:25 PM
too late, stjr. The City Council is already sponsored by the development community.

I wrote that originally but then thought it might be a little to mean spirited even if well deserved. Some council reps are naive or spineless while others are owned. Same result though.

mtraininjax · October 15, 2009, 10:22:15 AM

Complete article on it in the Daily Record, a Jim Bailey publication, who is also running for Mayor in 2011.

http://jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=529322

jbroadglide · October 15, 2009, 10:26:08 AM

Quote from: mtraininjax on October 14, 2009, 04:12:38 PM
OK. Would like to know.

I checked with the city webmaster and there is no location on the city website that lists where any wi-fi hotspots are within city buildings. Sorry. I know thats not much help.

mtraininjax · October 15, 2009, 10:29:59 AM

JB - I know, I am peeved about that too. The Library does an excellent job in promoting their wi-fi hotspots. But the City does an absolutely LOUSY job at it, about status quo for most things the city does, I guess.

I work with folks at Adult Services, and they are unhappy with this as well. Many seniors can afford a laptop that runs with wi-fi, and runs faster than most of the hand-me-down machines in the Senior Centers, but there is no wi-fi in these centers and they are used by more people daily, than most city buildings. But then again, it is the City and I am not suprised.

jbroadglide · October 15, 2009, 10:32:06 AM

However given the current economic times, as a taxpayer, I would be less than pleased to learn the city was going to install wi-fi in a bunch of buildings that would only get used by a minimum number of people. Not to say those people are not important and deserve the access. I would just rather that tax dollar go to something to benefit the majority.

mtraininjax · October 15, 2009, 10:36:28 AM

JB - Go check out Mary Singleton center and see the number of people in there, any time of the day. Believe me, they get good use out of that center and the way that data is collected now, to get stats back to the State for re-imbursement, could be improved 300% by a wi-fi system. Adding wi-fi is not expensive, and if ITD has it on its cushy floor and others have it, why don't more have it and what is the plan for extending it? More wi-fi, could mean, fewer employees needed.

jbroadglide · October 15, 2009, 10:55:48 AM

mtrain, your comments and ideas are valid. I'm not the one to answer those questions though. Your city council person would be the one to ask and get the answers.

mtraininjax · October 15, 2009, 04:25:29 PM

JB - My city council person isn't even worth gum on the bottom of my shoe.

stjr · October 15, 2009, 05:19:50 PM

How much would it cost to install WiFi in a senior citizens center? A connection would be maybe $50 to $100 a month (the City could probably get a better deal if they worked at it) plus a $50 to $100 wireless router?

Better yet, get one of the drug companies to sponsor WiFi there. When the senior logs on, a drug ad is the home page before they click through. See, just like the bus shelters, ads can pay for all our concerns.

In fact, we could ad WiFi to every bus shelter doing the same thing (maybe the WiFi ads could pay for the bus shelter and we wouldn't have to endanger our sign ordinance after all!). Just like the airports, you could surf the net while waiting for the bus. Now that would be nifty!

mtraininjax · October 15, 2009, 05:31:55 PM

stjr - You are proposing something that makes absolutely perfect sense to someone who has to deal with the City and try and float something that makes perfect sense to a group of people who take perfectly good ideas and then sit on them for months.

Every bus could have wi-fi, its not physically impossible. But I'd rather JTA spend money to fix the potholes than add wi-fi on a bus.

stjr · October 15, 2009, 05:44:15 PM

Quote from: mtraininjax on October 15, 2009, 05:31:55 PM
But I'd rather JTA spend money to fix the potholes than add wi-fi on a bus.

I was actually referring to bus shelters but buses are viable also. Again, with ads this could be done at no expense to the pothole budget. JTA/COJ can still have money for potholes (hey, lets sell ads on the repair barricades to pay for the pothole repairs ) No excuses. Ads are the new panacea!