PBPN awarded funds to expand park Wi-Fi
The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation (PBPN) has been named as one of 18 agencies and organizations across Kansas that will receive a share of $10.4 million in funds for critical broadband initiatives through the Advancing Digital Opportunities to Connect Kansans (ADOPT) grant program, it has been reported.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly announced on Monday that the Kansas Office of Broadband Development will distribute the $10.4 million among the agencies and organizations across the state to connect Kansans to high-speed internet by making public Wi-Fi accessible and distributing devices in underserved areas.
As one of the ADOPT grant recipients, PBPN will receive $496,340 to bring Wi-Fi access to the Prairie People’s Park, where that access is not currently available. PBPN plans to use the funds, along with matching funds, to install 10 Wi-Fi poles at strategic locations in the park, each pole outfitted with an Outdoor Wireless Access Point to provide Wi-Fi service.
“Broadband access is a common thread that is central to bringing our communities together and creating spaces for their residents to succeed in today’s digital world,” Gov. Kelly said. “From public safety to workforce readiness and online education — these awards will continue to propel Kansans forward.”
Prairie People’s Park, which is located half a mile north of the intersection of 150th and M roads on the Potawatomi reservation, is described as a “community hub” and offers amenities for visitors such as a playground, picnic tables, the adjacent Iron Bridges disc golf course and restrooms. It is located within the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Common Lands, a highly rural area in Jackson County.
According to documentation filed with PBPN’s application for ADOPT grant funds, the installation of Wi-Fi service at the park will allow participants at events held at the park to have internet access “for social media use, access to event information online, access to public safety information, allowing vendors to complete transactions and preserving emergency communications capabilities in the event of an emergency.”
It was estimated that during peak park use events including tribal gatherings and pow-wows, the project will benefit 700 to 1,000 per event at smaller events and an average of 9,000 people at larger events such as the annual Potawatomi Gathering, it was reported. Currently, internet at the park is limited to about 100 users at a time and is password-protected, according to the ADOPT grant application.
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