EVDO + Catalyst + TechBirmingham + Verizon Wireless = ?
As I prepare to start my weekend a day early, I figured I’d take a look at my friend Curtis’ Flickr account. Actually, I was checking mine to see if any comments had been made on images I’ve uploaded to my account. Don’t ask me why, I’m really not sure what made me do it. Anyway, I came across the following picture:
It’s Mr. Palmer, with Catalyst executive director Cherie Fields and board chair Elizabeth Dotts. Now, I was aware that Verizon Wireless was in town this morning to announce that they flipped the switch and now provide EVDO service in the metro Birmingham area. Click here if you don’t understand what those letters in the previous sentence mean. It’s interesting that the announcement was today since, according to Scott Allan, the “switch” got flipped on August 29th. Based on the big check they’re holding ($20,000!) and the title of the picture, it appears that Catalyst has been awarded funding from Verizon Wireless, but don’t ask me for what; I have no idea. I’m hopeful that Curtis, one of my fellow board members, or the newspaper may be able to share more about this soon. Needless to say, the presence of Verizon Wireless and TechBirmingham (Curtis) means something is about to happen in our ever growing tech scene.
UPDATE: Click here to learn exactly how the grant money will be used. It’s a great win for the community.
The Ramble: Can you really build your way out of a traffic problem?
Published by Andre on August 18, 2006An article in yesterday’s Birmingham News spoke of an engineering plan that will call for a four-lane elevated toll road over U.S. 280. The plan was approved by the Progress 280 group with the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce yesterday, with public hearings to take place at the end of the month. Here’s the links to yesterday’s and today’s stories:
A conversation with a long time resident this morning has me wondering why people would be more willing to pay to drive on a road than pay to have the ability to get additional work done during their commute. I was reminded of the benefits of a transit commute by a recent editorial written by John Saxon to the Birmingham News about his experiences in Budapest. Here’s a cached link to his letter courtesy of Google. Here’s a cached link to a response that the newspaper published. It goes back to the idea of civic pride, but there’s something to be said about always selling yourselves short. Nothing will ever result. This is also where I remind people that we have not always depended on cars in this city; it once boasted the nation’s second largest streetcar system. Read on…