Archive

Mono Council to investigate having an Internet work station

December 14, 2018   ·   0 Comments

By Jasen Obermeyer

Mono Council is considering establishing a business centre/work station for residents to access high speed Internet.

The first meeting of the new term of council, and the last of the calendar year was this Tuesday, Dec. 11. Deputy Mayor John Creelman put forth the motion to establish the centre, either at the Municipal Office or other Town facilities where residents could access the Internet at speeds up to 150 Mbps up and down.  

As he described it to council and staff, the work station would be a simple desk, chair, electrical outlet and Ethernet jack, with residents bringing their own laptops. Users would not access inappropriate sites and be limited to specific durations. “This would be similar to an arrangement we might have in a public library.”

He explained this would give residents access to the highest Internet speed possible primarily to download and/or upload large files and to permit video conferencing.

Councillor Ralph Manktelow questioned how often it would be used but was nonetheless supportive of the concept. “However, it is something that we can offer residents. I think it’s worth giving a shot.”

“The primary concern is gong to be security,” commented CAO Mark Early. 

“We should be guided by how another entity addresses those problems,” noted Deputy Mayor Creelman. 

Mayor Laura Ryan was concerned with the wording regarding establishing the facility. “That makes a commitment that we may not be able to fully realize.” She looked to have staff come back with a report, thereby gaining more concrete information. 

“I’m going to stick with the wording as is because I wanted to have some force in effect in terms of providing a service to or residents,” said Deputy Mayor Creelman. “In the meantime, we need to send a statement.”

Councillor Fred Nix put forth an amendment, changing the wording to consider establishing, which with the exception of the deputy mayor, council approved. 

Town staff will prepare recommendations in regard to its location and operation for the Jan. 22 council meeting. 

Council unanimously approved of Deputy Mayor Creelman’s motion to investigate video streaming of council meetings, potentially establishing a Mono YouTube channel that, among other things, would be used to broadcast council and possibly committee meetings, reporting back in February.

Council briefly discussed the appointment of an alternate member to County Council, in the event that Mayor Ryan or Deputy Mayor Creelman were unable to attend. Councillor Nix’s nomination of Councillor Sharon Martin for the position was unanimously approved, and Councillor Martin gratefully accepted it.


Readers Comments (0)





Please note: Comment moderation is enabled and may delay your comment. There is no need to resubmit your comment.