By Patricia A. Scheyer
NKyTribune reporter
Officials from Boone County and Altafiber gathered at England-Idlewild park in Burlington to kick off a new achievement; Wifi in the parks, a much desired benefit by residents who frequent the parks for sports and events.
A crowd gathered to celebrate the first park, England-Idlewild, going live, Friday thanks to Boone County and Altafiber.
This event coincided with the beginning of the National Disc Golf Association Pro Tour LWS Open event, and participants were able to take part in both events.
“England-Idlewild park is now Wi-Fi enabled, and can be accessed through a splash page at “_BooneCountyFreeWiFi”, said Boone County County Administrator Matthew Webster.
Several other parks will come on line in the next few months, including Central Park, Boone Woods Park, Petersburg Community Center, Giles-Conrad Park, Walton Community Park, Florence Nature Park, South Fork Park, Boone’s Landing Marina, Lassing Point Golf Course, England-Idlewild Dog Park, Boone Links, and Stringtown Park in Florence.
“We have had a lot of parents asking when we might get wifi in the parks,” said David Whitehouse, Director of Boone County Parks. “The cell service has been spotty, too. During Covid the problem really came up, because kids were being homeschooled and parents wanted to do some schoolwork in the parks, but there was no wifi.”
He said being able to combine the wifi event with the beginning of the National Disc Golf Tour was great because disc golf is very popular in Northern Kentucky, and they would be able to livestream their events.
“We do have a lot of events in our parks,” said Whitehouse. “We have our concert series, which is very popular, and a lot of children’s activities. There are also quite a bit of sports, soccer and baseball especially, where parents take their kids, and they need cell service they can depend on, plus they need internet.”
The increased access to public Wi-Fi is part of the public/private partnership between Boone County and Altafiber that was announced in 2021. The agreement also is responsible for bringing fiberoptics to all single family and multi-dwelling unit addresses in the county.
Included with this partnership, altafiber’s Smart City organization, called Unicity, is funding $500,000 worth of improvements to Boone County’s public Wi-Fi infrastructure.
Unicity works with communities all over the country to leverage technology systems that enhance businesses, as well as neighborhood based events, and public safety.
“Altafiber is excited to partner with Boone County on this important initiative,” said Dan Mazza, Senior Director of Sales at Altafiber. “Access to public Wi-Fi enhances the quality of life for residents and visitors, and will create new economic development opportunities for the city.”
Other areas will be getting Wi-Fi in the near future. Union Park, Orleans Park and Lincoln Woods Park are in the early stages of laying the groundwork for the service.
“The Unicity public Wi-Fi project will enhance connectivity in Boone County and bring additional value to the county parks and recreation assets,” said Judge Executive Gary Moore. “This project was negotiated as part of the fiber broadband initiative, and is being constructed at no cost to the taxpayer. I appreciate the partnership with Altafiber to bring this to reality, and look forward to the residents of Boone County having access to free public wi-fi when using our parks and recreation facilities.”