Downtown Sch'dy Gone Wireless

Ah yes. Good ol' Schenectady, NY is going wireless.

As a former (brief) resident of Albany, NY, Schenectady was just a hop, skip and a jump from down town Lark Street - Schenectady was a place where my then-roommates lived - before the advent of broadband Internet (or wireless, for that matter) - where we communicated via a DOS-like e-mail system....

And look at Schenectady, all grown up and wireless. *sniffle* It seems like only yesterday when our beloved "Scheedy" was just a place we called home. Or just a place we could go and visit parents and do our laundry. Either way - Scheedy has moved onwards and upwards. Details below....

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Metroplex joined with County and City officials today to announce plans to make all of downtown Schenectady wireless, advancing the revival of downtown. In addition, the company that will install the new wireless system, Logical Net, plans to move its corporate offices from Colonie to downtown Schenectady creating almost 50 new tech jobs in Schenectady.

Mayor Brian U. Stratton said, "We are pleased to welcome Logical Net and the new wireless service to downtown Schenectady. This project brings more tech jobs to our City while creating a unique opportunity to help make Schenectady a leader in Tech Valley."

Intel Corporation recently ranked the Albany-Schenectady-Troy metro areas as 46th of 100 metro areas for the availability and use of wireless Internet services.

Tush Nikollaj, Chairman and CEO of Logical Net, said, "We are thrilled that MetroPlex chose Logical Net as the preferred vendor in bringing Schenectady in the forefront for wireless Internet connectivity. Considering we have been deploying wireless for the past five years, we plan to provide a robust wireless infrastructure to the community that will service many local businesses and residences. We are fortunate that we embraced wireless in the early stages of development and now have the knowledge and expertise to deploy it in any community - large and small."

While Albany Airport, the Amtrak train station in Rensselaer and other local areas are "hotspots" with the availability of wireless services, the goal of the downtown Schenectady project is to create the largest wireless area in the Capital Region and one of the largest such systems in New York State.

The Schenectady wireless system will feature a web based portal page that will provide links to downtown attractions like Proctors, the new Bow Tie Cinema as well as other local establishments. In addition, Metroplex plans to install at least four wireless security cameras downtown as part of a network of cameras that will be installed using a State grant obtained by District Attorney Robert M. Carney.

Gary McCarthy, Metroplex Board member and Chair of the Metroplex subcommittee who developed the wireless project said, "The investment in Schenectady by Logical Net continues the real change that has happened in our community over the last 18 months. Having people like Tush Nikollaj and his management team pick Schenectady for their home shows we are able to attract regional companies who provide world class products and services."

"I have seen a tremendous amount of improvement taking place in Schenectady that was hard to imagine several years ago," Nikollaj said "I am looking forward to being part of Schenectady as it continues to develop of what I believe to be the next Hot Spot for the Tech Valley Region."

The new wireless system will be installed under terms of a $146,000.00 contract with Logical Net. The company was selected after a competition that featured several Internet service providers.

Metroplex will also provide Logical Net with a $150,000 loan at 3% interest for 10 years plus an $85,000 relocation grant to help the company establish its new operation in Schenectady. The company plans to lease the top floor of the Picotte Building at 530 Franklin Street.