Kansas City’s east side to receive free wireless gigabit network

Kansas City is diligently continuing work to become the most connected city on earth.

Three organizations are now working to create a free, large-scale wireless gigabit network on Kansas City’s east side.

The project — led by Siklu Communications, the Urban Neighborhood Initiative and KC Digital Drive — will help eliminate cost barriers to help bridge the digital divide. The network will be available at such locales as the Historic Lincoln Building, the Mutual Musicians Foundation, several churches and the Ivanhoe Neighborhood Alliance.

The project will leverage “Millimeter Wave” technology to bypass infrastructure limitations that older buildings may present. The project will use Siklu millimeter wave radios that will attach to existing fiber provided by KC Web.

The radios can be quickly attached to building facades, the tops of buildings, poles and other points in the community to create a faster wireless extension of fiber. By using millimeter wave radios frequencies, the radios can transmit gigabit internet with low latency and no interference, Siklu said. The radios operate in the 60, 70/80 GHz spectrum bands.

“We believe that connectivity helps empower communities and lets Kansas City continue our growth as a gigabit leader,” Dianne Cleaver, executive director of Urban Neighborhood Initiative, said in a release. “While blessed with an abundance of fiber, even throughout the east side, we still face barriers to connecting individual homes and critical community anchors. Siklu’s technology will provide affordable gigabit connections throughout the UNI area.”

The new project is the latest in a series of initiatives that will create wireless networks around Kansas City.

Google announced in April that it’s planning to build a massive wireless broadband network in Kansas City. Google expects to spend the next six months delivering equipment for construction of the wireless network.

The moves have compelled Kansas City officials to become more conscious in communicating digital inclusion efforts. Connecting For Good CEO Tom Esselman recently shared his thoughts on digital divide efforts with Startland News.