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June 30, 2005
As municipalities across the country race to eliminate the digital divide and bring the best of the internet to its businesses and residents, King County has jumped ahead with the nation’s largest free wireless internet access area in a public park.
Visitors to King County’s Marymoor Park can now order a picnic online, chat with friends and family on e-mail and connect to the information they need all while enjoying the beauty of the park’s surroundings. All they need is an 802.11 ethernet card that now comes standard with most laptops.
Under terms of the agreement with King County Parks, MSN is sponsoring wireless hotspots at Marymoor Park , the King County Aquatic Center and any future hot spots in King County Parks. In his State of the County address Sims announced his intention to d eliver wireless access to public buildings, buses, parks and the White Center community. Wireless access at Marymoor will be available in 170 acres of the 640-acre park. Sports fields, the Group Health Velodrome, Subway and the concert venue will all have access.
“Our entrepreneurial approach for generating revenue to keep parks open is to make them even more appealing by increasing amenities,” said King County Executive Ron Sims. “MSN is a natural partner to support parks because we are both about building community by connecting people. Marymoor is a gathering place for family picnics, organized sports and enjoying a day with other dog lovers. Now, the virtual experience can also be part of that.”
Sims and MSN Director of Marketing Bob Visse today announced the naming rights partnership and highlighted the park’s wireless access by ordering a picnic online. Over a picnic with the sun shining above, each sent an e-mail announcement of the arrangement to MSN and King County employees.
“At MSN , our ultimate goal is to connect our customers to the people and information that matter most to them, said MSN Director of Marketing Bob Visse. “We’re pleased to support Wi-Fi access in Marymoor Park and excited to offer this opportunity to our community.”
MSN recently launched a beta of its MSN Local Search service, which enables people to quickly receive search results from local Yellow Pages and White Pages listings from business, residential or local Web sites, as well as informative maps and aerial images related to their search query. Marymoor Park visitors can use the MSN Local Search service to locate nearby restaurants, entertainment options, delivery services, or other local topics of interest.
Generating revenue by increasing park amenities is one of the creative solutions King County is pursuing to keep parks open and well maintained. An advisory group created by Sims two years ago issued a blueprint for saving county parks that calls for entrepreneurial initiatives to generate new revenue, cost cuts, new partnerships and a new focus on regional parks, pools and trails. Since implementation began in 2002, King County has created successful new ventures like the Marymoor Concert Series and has focused on partnerships as a way to enhance recreation while limiting costs. Also, 10 pools and 20 parks have been transferred to various cities and non-profits, saving King County taxpayers more than $7 million annually. This King County–MSN relationship is the latest success of these efforts.
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Updated: June 30, 2005
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