Free Wi-Fi kicks off in downtown Modesto
More than two dozen officials gathered Tuesday morning at Tenth Street Plaza for the debut of an amenity they hope will help downtown Modesto attract more people – free wireless Internet service.
Salida-based technology firm Fire2Wire is providing the service at no cost to the city. It is starting small, offering Wi-Fi on Tenth Street between J and K streets, which includes the plaza, and extending the coverage to in front of Modesto Centre Plaza, the city’s convention center.
Fire2Wire plans to expand the service to two other downtown locations – near the Gallo Center for the Arts and near the State Theatre – and at a third location, possibly Graceada Park, in the coming months. The next downtown location could go live by November or December.
Fire2Wire Executive Vice President William Moreno said his company is providing free Wi-Fi to help the city and downtown by providing a service often found in Bay Area cities. He also thanked those who have helped with the project, including Brenden Theatres Modesto 18 general manager Saul Trujillo and Chris Murphy, founder and publisher of ModestoView, the free entertainment tabloid.
Mayor Garrad Marsh thanked Fire2Wire for bringing Wi-Fi to downtown. Marsh said the city had looked into doing this but could not find the funding.
Moreno has said the Wi-Fi will time out after one hour so people could not spend hours each day using it. Fire2Wire’s intent is to make coming downtown more inviting for people who want to have a meal, see a movie or shop. He has said the service will be reliable and have lots of bandwidth.
Moreno said Fire2Wire is considering offering free Wi-Fi to other Stanislaus County cities. The company’s flagship product is providing Wi-Fi service in seven San Joaquin Valley and foothills counties, including Stanislaus.
Tuesday’s news conference was held by Modesto, the Stanislaus Business Alliance and Fire2Wire.
This story was originally published August 18, 2015 at 4:25 PM with the headline "Free Wi-Fi kicks off in downtown Modesto."