Service Restored at Downtown Alliance’s Bowling Green Wi-Fi Hotspot
Service was restored last week at the Alliance for Downtown New York’s Wi-Fi hotspot at Bowling Green, bringing the network back to full capacity. The Downtown Alliance – the first wireless business district in the country – recently enhanced its Wi-Fi network to provide free coverage spanning more than half a million square feet of space at nine hotspots in parks and public spaces in Lower Manhattan. The interruption was caused by renovations to Norwegian architecture firm Snohetta, where the hotspot’s router is housed. Once renovations were complete, power was restored to the office and service was up and running.
“With our nine locations – and more on the horizon – Lower Manhattan continues to set the wireless standard for central business districts, and our Bowling Green location is an integral part of the network, said Elizabeth H. Berger, President of the Downtown Alliance. “Thanks to Snohetta for helping us restore service.”
“Every day we see hundreds of people filtering through this small but popular park,” said Craig Dykers, Senior Partner and Principal at Snohetta. “This parade never stops, and we are happy to help the Downtown Alliance provide another Wi-Fi hotspot. Coming from the relative quiet of Oslo, it is always a charge to see the life of the city from our window in Lower Manhattan.”
The Downtown Alliance established the Lower Manhattan Wireless Network in 2003. Lower Manhattan is the first wireless business district in the United States and a world leader in free public Wi-Fi. The network enables workers, residents and visitors to connect to the Internet from laptops, PDAs and smartphones at nine hotspots, which were recently upgraded with higher bandwidth, new technology and expanded coverage. The network is designed to allow anyone to walk to a hotspot within minutes from any point below Chambers Street, enable connection speeds as fast as DSL (digital subscriber line) and accommodate more than 254 users simultaneously at each location.
Wi-Fi is available at:
• The Plaza at 7 World Trade Center
• Bowling Green
• British Memorial Garden
• City Hall Park
• South Street Seaport
• Stone Street
• Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial Plaza
• Winter Garden and Plaza at the World Financial Center
• The Atrium at 60 Wall Street.
The Downtown Alliance has witnessed astronomical growth in usage Downtown. Just from 2009 to 2010, the number of connections onto the network skyrocketed by more than 128 percent. Currently, the network experiences more than 6,600 connections (on average) each month. In the last 30 days alone, with the onset of spring, the Downtown Alliance has recorded 7,000 logons. Sky-Packets, a Nassau County Wi-Fi company, has serviced the Downtown Alliance’s network since the fall of 2009.