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<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Hi Davisites <br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">A) The WhiteHouse Broadband
Opportunity
Council has just referred to Access to Broadband a “Core Utility”
This is a big deal, and a big report. Thanks for the Tip ET! We
are reframing Internet Access as a utility, and the DavisGIG
community-owned plan fiber for fiber optic network is a de facto
a more utility style implementation of Internet access.</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.engadget.com/2015/09/22/white-house-says-broadband-is-a-core-utility/">http://www.engadget.com/2015/09/22/white-house-says-broadband-is-a-core-utility/</a><br>
<br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">B) This month has been about meetings,
here are some good meetings DavisGIG has had recently. These are
important becasue the convey the vision to other leaders and
stakeholders in the community and help move the project along.</p>
I'd like to really encourage other
folks in the community to come to these and share their $0.02. When
you present our civic leaders with multiple perspectives from people
with diverse life experiences all advocating a similar goal for the
City, it helps convince them this is the right choice.
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">So thank you to everyone that arranged
these events and attended them on our behalf over the last month.
Lets move this along. <br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Meetings <br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">1 - DJUSD with Director of
Instructional Technology and IT Manager</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">2 - David Greenwald - PVOD </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">3 - Soroptomist luncheon</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">4- Jumpstart Davis</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">5 - DCN Executive Committee Meeting </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">6 - Chief Innovation Officer</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">7 - Felisha Alvarez - Davis Enterprise</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Details <br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">1 - The Meeting with DJUSD was
presented as an initial meeting to brief people in the
superintendent's office on the project, andinvite their
participation
in future discussions with other stake holders involved in
building
out our municipal fiber optic network. IT was a 45 minute meeting,
attended by myself, Richard Lauckhart from El Macero, along with
Marcia Bernard and Bob Kehr. We provided an overview of how the
network would operate, the benefit it would bring to the schools,
their stronger negotiating position with Comcast for future Inet
use, and
other issues. They indicated they would discuss it amongst their
technology committee, to come up with additional things they could
do
with a fiber optic network to all the homes and businesses. They
were
very concerned about digital divide issues and reaching all of the
students in Davis. This plan does do that, as it was conceived, so
that is a strength. They asked what they could do to help, and we
suggested, get engaged with the process, at a task force, and 2x2
meeting level to advocate and support the deployment of a
municipal
fiber network. Joing the volunteer list. Further asked that if it
went forward they re-engage
at the board level with DCN or a future DavisGIG operating
committe
of DCN. </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">2 - David Greenwald met me at the
Makerspace and did a 10 minute interview for the Jumpstart Davis
Event, made no promises and delivered nothing. His recorder is
nice,
I think I'm going to get one for our next General Meeting.</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">3 - Had a very comfortable reception
and delivered an extemporaneous lecture about DavisGIG to the
Soroptomist group. We really need to engage further with this
network
and more like it. Most of us are surrounded in realms of tech
geekery, and so take fiber optic for granted as a naturally
preferable evolution for Internet Access in Davis, this group were
over half retirees, and yet I felt everyone not only understood
the
concept, they were largely positive on it. There was a 20 minute
or
so talk, with about 15 minutes of great questions. We were able to
distribute our 3-4 Internet contact points to their list, and I
heard some options and good feedback. Thanks HB!</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">4 - Jumpstart Davis is a regular
monthly meetup to showcase local entreprenuerial activities. Thank
you to the many DavisGIG Volunteers who came to support our talk.
IT
was also somewhat extemporaneous, with presentation slides from
our
prior Library outreach effort. A lot of City leaders were present
as
well, and it was great for them to hear all the general
rambunctious
energy from all our supporters and other attendees at the event.
We
reinforced contacts with community leaders, made some new allies
of
the effort, and really drew great enthusiasm from a dinner party
at a nearby table. A good thing is that this meeting led to
2 future meetings which happened this week, with CIO of the City
and the Enterprise. Scott Ragsdale from Davis
Roots spoke in passing about helping get this sold in Davis, but
no
contact has been forthcoming from him. He also said soemthing like
that at the Small Business Boost conference and didnt return any
email then either, so likely no help there.</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">5 - DCN has regular weekly lunch
meetings, and
this last week it was attended by a very eloquent DavisGIG
advocate
Matthew Williams. He presented several new strategies he feels
could
help move our project forward in a more timely way, plus opinions
on
the financing and direction of the effort. Some good public
relations
ideas he brought are a student campaign in conjunction with DJUSD
where we get all school children to donate a $1 or so, for their
future
broadband network, a powerful symbol. He's also advocating
financing
the effort from revenue bonds, and paying for the network from ISP
lease fees or “franchise fees” for accessing the network, rather
than an every address pays for the service, which would trigger a
Prop 218 vote, or some other tax. Finally, another solid idea is
solicitng the MRIC
folks to assist in putting forward funds for the preparation of
the
FSR, and so we can get this all done in a more timely way then
going
through the perceived slower public process. I very much
appreciate
someone who is as passionate about getting this done, and to let
everyone know, as Matt has been forthcoming on this in these
meetings. He is running for City council in 2016, and I believe
DavisGIG will be a plank in the platform. IT seems now this is
taken
on a life of its own, but, hey a great meeting! And great to have
another enthusiastic person that is community minded and
determined to see this happen.<br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">6 - Had a great 1 hour talk with
Diane Parro at the Davis Makerspace this morning. We discussed our
backgrounds, the Internet, mediums of Internet transmission,
what's
needed, for DavisGIG to operate, so on and so forth. GREAT
meeting. We are fortunate, because
it seems in her prior work in the County she has been liasoned on
Broadband issues extensively out of Don Saylor's supervisor
office,
and has brought the issue forward for years through various
committees if only to be stymied. Now this in Davis. After the
meeting she has a good grounding of how networks operate, why
fiber is better than coax, and why open access is better than
monopoly Internet. Process going forward is getting something to
council in the
October/early Nov timeline, putting together her a workiing group,
not a TASK FORCE, to
help get the RFP/FSR stuff done. Stuff we have been discussing
since
meeting 2 of the DavisGIG group. I've put it out there, that we
want
to just do all that now, and I'll be seeing what they say to that
next week. 6/16 is right aroung the corner. </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">After this first, grounding in
Internet Concepts, We are meeting again next week, time to
have another person or two from our group to drop in and add their
bit. Drop me a line. Especially someone that can put their FSR Hat
and getting things done, and reassure them we can take it on, at
least fast tracking this process to some consultancy to get a
quick turn around from a reputable agency. Several peoplein the
community have put forward we could fundraise on that issue, , and
perhaps get buy in from the Innovation Center folsk. She is also
working on her round of
higher level stakeholder meetings and getting buy in from other
peole in town. Helped give her a list.</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">7 - After DP left the Makerspace,
Felisha Alvarez, a UCD grad and reporter from the Enterprise took
a
great in depth 1 hour or so interview on DavisGIG. I spun out the
long yarn of our tale, our history, and how we have gotten to
where
we are. What comes next, and a lot of similar stuff that we went
over
with DP. We'll see if it goes anywhere, but she sounded very
interested. </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">C) We should have lawn signs at our
next meeting. Wed October 7<sup>th</sup> at 6:30 pm at Sudwerk.<br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Anyway – more is to be done. Please
check out TRELLO ! <a href="http://www.trello.com/davisgig">http://www.trello.com/davisgig</a></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Pick a task, get it done.If you need
an invite email <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:rob@omsoft.com">rob@omsoft.com</a>. You should be able to see 4 or so
boards covering general project areas, with lists for specific
areas and cards for individual tasks. Add your own tasks or boards
if you want. we are starting to have a need to flesh this project
out, now that there is civic interest. Go to it. <br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">At least sign up and get us some free
Trello Gold. <br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Onward.<br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">RAN<br>
<br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><br>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><br>
</p>
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