Nonprofits prepare for a share of broadband stimulus funds - South Florida Business Journal:

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billion of the American Recovery and Reinvestmentf Act allocated to provide broadband access to unserved and underserved populationd acrossthe nation, the region’s nonprofits are scramblingb to bring a share to South Though the federal government hasn’t decided the rules for disbursin g the money, advocates have been strategizing for months on ways to bridge the digital divide and increase the region’sz competitiveness by completing new projects and expanding existing ones.
But, getting South Florida full wired won’t be With ideas ranging from providintg free broadband access for disadvantaged students to putting government agencies ona single, high-speexd network and outfitting emergency responders with mobilse Wi-Fi, the challenge is to pursue thoses initiatives most likely to succeed. One existingy program hoping to capitalizse on stimulus money isFloridsa LambdaRail, a Tallahassee-based nonprofit cooperative of education and research organizations that sharee a broadband connection, which allows them to save , , , and use the ultra-fasgt LambdaRail, but the cooperative is looking to expandc its services to benefit otherr nonprofit agencies, CEO Phil Halstead There are too many unserved or underserved peopl e in Florida, he said, notingb many institutions could streamlinr costs and increase speed by using “The state is seeking a vision,” Halstead said.
“We’rse trying to create an Eisenhower interstate system for Tothat end, LambdaRaill is to host a “broadband at FAU on June 16. The summit will brinb together technology chiefs to study ways to expand use of the Questions of how to get stimulus money and what to do with it will loom largde overthe summit, Halstea d said. The $7.2 billion up for grabs for broadbanf will be split betweenthe U.S. ($4.76 billion) and the ($2.5 billion), said Lind a Fuchs, Gov.
Charlie Crist’s deputy coordinator for stimulus The Agriculture funds are supposed to target rural populations, while the Commerce money will be a little more Even so, Fuchs cautionefd that the federal government is still deciding how to distribute the money. It is unknown whethed funds will go throughthe states, as is the case with transportatiob stimulus money, or directly to local applicants. And, unlikre the transportation funds, broadband money will be doledeout competitively. In other words, Sout Florida may not see a dime, Fuchs said. To maximizd their chances, each county has a nonprofit agencymaking plans.
The Miami-Dads Broadband Coalition developed a working proposalin December, said Kim chairwoman of the coalition’s interim executive There was about $200 million worth of need identified, she One idea under consideration is to expands Elevate Miami, a city of Miami program that targetsd the county’s underserved. Another possibility is providing low- or no-cosg broadband access for the homes of disadvantaged The coalition would also like to creata “telemedicine network” in county allowing doctors to examine studentws through video conferencing, Marcille said.
In Broward, countyt organizations could reduce waste by consolidating on a shared broadband pipe, instead of paying for servicess separately, said Phyllis Schiffer-Simon, president of a nonprofit digital advocacy group. “We’d be creatingb our own network.” OneBroward’s working proposals woul cost about $25 million, Schiffer-Simon Chuck Spalding, project manager for the Palm Beach Broadband cooperative, said the county could use stimulus monehy to provide free Wi-Fik access to the homes of disadvantaged students. Another idea is to link governmentt and nonprofit agencies in rural areasx to acentral network, such as the LamdbaRail.
“Wr can provide them with dramatically increasesd bandwidth over what they currentl y have atabout one-thirdf the cost,” he