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Broadband in Greencastle, Indiana by Mayor Sue Murray

• Total economic impact of $2,679,847,808 if broadband deployment were increased at a reasonable level. (Connected Nation, The Economic Impact of Stimulating Broadband Nationally)

• Net job growth of 52,863 jobs from increase in broadband deployment. (Connected Nation, The Economic Impact of Stimulating Broadband Nationally)

• The Indiana Telehealth Advisory Consortium collaborates with state and local organizations to pool resources for telehealth and telemedicine applications and develops state telehealth policy initiatives. (Alliance for Public Technology and Communications Workers of America, State Broadband Initiatives)

Former Mayor Graham Richard explained how, when taking office in 2000, he formed a team dedicated to incorporating technology into the community’s public safety programs. Early on, Graham recalled, the mandate for broadband was clear. “What can we do with technology to make sure that we’re using every available hour of every police officer in a particular and in an effective way?” he said

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Ft. Wayne Journal Gazette

December 23, 2007

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Click Below to Watch Interviews of EIPF Attendees

Broadband Applications Credited For Helping to Reduce Crime

WASHINGTON DC — NextGenWeb.org today posted an exclusive podcast interview with Mayor Graham Richard of Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

When Mayor Richard ran for office in 2000, he quickly recognized the powerful improvements high-speed Internet would bring to all sectors of the community- economic, health, education and public safety. Early in his administration, Mayor Richard formed a team dedicated to incorporating technology into the community’s public safety programs. In a few short years, this task force has created a highly mobile and efficient first responder community.

These initiatives created through the use of broadband technology have lowered crime in the Ft. Wayne area to the lowest level in 27 years. Since 2001, the community has had a steady decrease in the crime rate. This year Ft. Wayne experienced a 5.5% decline.

Broadband access in Ft. Wayne has led to the establishment of the following public safety initiatives:

• Firehouse College: Firefighters connect with online educational resources while they are in-between response calls. By educating the firefighters and leveraging their time with training, the community is creating a better prepared and efficient group of first responders.
• Training: A brand new, $27 million high-tech facility was built in Ft. Wayne to coordinate collaborative communication efforts between the 5,000 public safety volunteers in the local five county region. This coordination center has partnered with similar organizations in the country to create a national public safety community for information and best practice sharing.
• More secure and efficient ways to store and transmit data: Using remote broadband connections, public safety officials are able to send and receive data in real-time from the scene of the crime.

To listen to the complete interview, please visit www.nextgenweb.org.

NextGenWeb.org is a blog sponsored by USTelecom.

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Broadband access in Ft. Wayne has led to the establishment of the following public safety initiatives:

• Firehouse College: Firefighters connect with online educational resources while they are in-between response calls.     By educating the firefighters and leveraging their time with training, the community is creating a better prepared and efficient group of first responders.
• Training: A brand new, $27 million high-tech facility was built in Ft. Wayne to coordinate collaborative communication efforts between the 5,000 public safety volunteers in the local five county region.   This coordination center has partnered with similar organizations in the country to create a national public safety community for information and best practice sharing.  
• More secure and efficient ways to store and transmit data: Using remote broadband connections, public safety officials are able to send and receive data in real-time from the scene of the crime.

These initiatives created through the use of broadband technology have lowered crime in the Ft. Wayne area to the lowest level in 27 years.

Since 2001, the community has had a steady decrease in the crime rate.   For 2007, as of the end of October, Ft. Wayne experienced a 5.5% decline.

To listen to our podcast with Mayor Richard, click the link below

• Click here to listen to the podcast

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