EVERETT – If the city brings free wireless Internet, it would “be running with the big boys,” Everett resident Ron Boscola said.
Everett could claim for its own a distinction that the region often enjoys thanks to Seattle, a major-league player in the country’s technology industry.
Late last year, Intel Corp. named the Everett-Seattle-Tacoma corridor “America’s Most Unwired City,” due to the number of hot spots where wireless signals can be accessed. Seattle beat out previous winners San Francisco and Portland, Ore.
Only a handful of those spots are in Everett. But if a private company blankets the city with wireless capability, Everett could not only surpass other cities in the Puget Sound region, it could lead the way for cities nationwide.
“This would be a significant change,” said Boscola, who frequents Espresso Americano at the Everett Public Library on Hoyt Avenue for its Wi-Fi access. “It would boost Everett’s self-esteem a little bit, too.”
Espresso Americano manager Rosemary Pointer said her business would suffer if the city had wireless access.
“The majority of our customers come in to use the Wi-Fi,” she said. “We have some regulars who just come in by themselves, but most people bring their laptops.”
At Zippy’s Java Lounge on Hewitt Avenue, where customers can use desktop computers or bring laptops for wireless use, owner Marilyn Rosenberg said she believed customers would still visit for the atmosphere.
“Plus, it would bring my own costs down,” she said. “I think it’s a great idea.”
There are nine Starbucks stores in Everett, Starbucks spokesman Nick Davis said. All of them are T-Mobile hot spots, where subscribers can access Wi-Fi. The service is guaranteed to be fast and reliable; customers aren’t likely to give that up for a municipal connection, Davis said.
Marlene Hofer, owner of World Bean Cafe and Barista, bought her lunch spot a year ago, but didn’t continue the Wi-Fi service the previous owner had subscribed to. Even so, customers who brought their laptops were still able to log on through wireless access.
“It seemed to be working fine, so I thought, why not?” Hofer said.
She doesn’t know who the connection belongs to.
In the future, the practice of hopping onto a neighbor’s wireless signal could become obsolete.
Libby Beck, a 22-year-old nursing student at Everett Community College, said she can access a strong wireless signal from her north Everett home. She doesn’t know who pays for it.
Still, she visits Espresso Americano at the library.
“I come here twice a week, every week,” she said. “It’s the place where I can get my homework done.”
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