The Sea to Sky Free-Net Association, a registered non-profit
society in British Columbia, is making application for funding
under the Community Access Program to expand its existing services
to the remote community of Pemberton, using an access point in the
community of Whistler. This will fulfil the society's mandate of
serving all communities in the "Sea to Sky" economic region of B.C.
The project will be built upon the existing successful service to
the community of Squamish. The Sea to Sky Free-Net Association
already has a proven track-record, and all three communities
support the Free-Net in principle. The funding under the Community
Access program will provide the needed resources to fulfil our
mission.
The funds will be used to upgrade equipment, provide data lines and
modems, pay a 1/4 time System Manager, and pay expenses for travel
between the communities to establish a community awareness,
training, and mentoring program.
Section 1: NEED
The Sea to Sky corridor encompasses the communities of Squamish,
Whistler, Pemberton as well as smaller communities north and south
(Britannia Beach, Birken, Devine, D'Arcy). Squamish is a community
of 14,000 persons and is located at the northern end of Howe Sound,
approximately 60 kilometres north of Vancouver. It is largely a
logging town, although the natural beauty of the area attracts
tourists, skiers, hikers, climbers, windsurfers, golfers, anglers,
and mountain-bikers. The town is the maintenance headquarters of
the BC Railway. Western Forest Products operates a large pulp
mill, employing almost 400 people. The Resort Municipality of
Whistler is North America's number-one-rated ski destination;
Blackcomb and Whistler mountains attract thousands of people
between November and April each year. Pemberton is a traditional
farming and logging community, and the Pemberton Valley continues
to be one of B.C.'s important see-potato growing areas.
Unemployment in the Pemberton area is getting higher due to the
constant decrease in the allowable forest cut. The labour force is
moving away from forestry to tourism, a significant change in the
employment base.
All communities are dominated by the Coast Mountains, which tend to
isolate the towns a great deal, although the Sea to Sky region is
considered one economic region. The entire area is experiencing
rapid population growth due to the relatively low cost of housing.
Although the area is geographically close to Vancouver, access to
the resources of the Internet is very expensive, especially for
Pemberton. This isolation from the high-tech world provided the
impetus for a steering committee to begin work in 1992 to establish
a community network with free access to basic Internet services for
everyone in the region. Another objective was to educate the
citizens of the area about the changes occurring in our society by
the changing nature of communications media (i.e. e-mail). The
project received the endorsement of the public libraries, community
college, school district, municipal and regional governments, and
the Squamish Tantalus Seniors Centre.
The Sea to Sky Free-Net Association was formed in May 1993 with the
aim of establishing a community network system, and in May 1994,
through the dedication of a number of volunteers, had the fourth
operating community "Free-Net" system in Canada. We are working on
a very small budget with extremely limited financial resources, and
do not have access to big donors such as would be available in a
larger population centre. Through the generous donation of a data
line to Vancouver, and imminently, a free Internet connection, the
Sea to Sky Free-Net is currently able to provide service to the
citizens of Squamish. Growth is occurring at about 2,5% each week.
Two public terminals have been installed in Squamish (in the
Seniors Centre and the public library), providing access to people
who do not own a computer. We plan to install more public
terminals (e.g. Womens' Centre).
However, because of the high cost of data lines, and lack of
additional forthcoming donors or sponsors, the Association has not
yet been able to realize its mandate of serving Whistler and
Pemberton, and currently only Squamish residents have toll-free
access to the system. We have received many endorsements from
organizations in all three communities, so the will is there, but
not the funds. The server (donated) is currently under-powered.
This project would allow us to upgrade our server and modems, and
provide a data line to Whistler. Pemberton will be served from a
node in Whistler, since toll-free calling is in effect from
Pemberton to Whistler. Establishing a connection to Pemberton
would also enable the Free-Net to serve the needs of the First
Nations community in Mount Currie.
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Section 2: ORGANIZATION
The Directors of the Sea to Sky Free-Net Association will be
responsible for organizing and managing this project towards self-
sustainability. Over the course of the next 12 months this will
involve the following:
strengthening the community awareness program and expanding it
to Whistler and Pemberton, through local business. Capilano
College, local government offices, the libraries, community
service groups and the local media. The purpose of this will
be to educate individuals as the potential benefits of the
information highway for Pemberton and Whistler residents. The
Association will be able to select potential mentors and local
volunteers as a result of this effort;
creating a training and mentoring program in cooperation with
all three local libraries and Capilano College. Assigned
staff will train local team members, who will then become
mentors and trainers for the rest of the community.
Successful training and mentoring sessions have been held at
the Squamish Tantalus Seniors Centre; suitable location for
similar sessions in Whistler and Pemberton will be the public
libraries;
a specific initiative to bring community service groups in as
Information Providers. We will try to involve high-school
students, through the career preparation component of the
information technology program, to assist these groups with
getting their information on-line.
Capilano College is now offering evening computer courses within
the community. These include Internet courses. This will lead to
an increasingly diverse curriculum in computer technology and
network administration. Also, the local Internet will be used as
a medium for publication of college information, as well as course
outlines, and eventually some course delivery.
All residents taking part in the project will receive access to the
network and the necessary service training. The training will
continue to take place at the Tantalus Seniors Centre, and will
commence at the public libraries in Squamish, Whistler and
Pemberton on public terminals which have been donated by the local
business community. The public terminals will be available during
regular operating hours of the sponsoring partners, so that
everyone who wants to participate will get an equal opportunity.
As expertise is established, a growing number of individuals will
be able to offer their service for training to meet the growing
demand that is anticipated.
Logs of usage from the public terminals and the dial-up lines will
be kept to track usage throughout the project. A variety of
methods, including questionnaires and user response surveys, will
be used to determine the users' understanding of the Internet and
whether benefits were gained. Tracking of news stories, literature
and other material related to the project will be undertaken to
provide a community perspective of the success of the project. All
project costs including donated equipment, facilities, and
volunteer time will be recorded. Quarterly progress reports and a
final evaluation report and recommendations will be prepared by the
Free-Net directors.
Exhibit 2-1, [see Money Matters, 1996 Budget] contains a detailed
project budget which includes actual fixed and variable expenses,
and in-kind contributions from the System Manager, Directors, the
trainers and mentors, District Municipality of Squamish, the
Seniors Centre, and corporate sponsors.
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Section 3: INFRASTRUCTURE
The Tantalus Seniors Centre in Squamish will continue to be our
Community Access Site. We are also embarking on a partnership with
Capilano College, whose facilities would be more suitable for
expansion of the Free-Net's services. In any case, a public
terminal will continue to be located in the Seniors Centre, and
delivery of training and mentoring to individuals and organizations
within the community will occur at this location. The public
libraries in Whistler and Pemberton have also thrown their support
behind the expansion of the Free-Net into those communities, and
will be used a s sites for local meetings and training.
In addition to the existing two public terminals, as part of the
expansion two more terminals will be located in the Whistler and
Pemberton public libraries, and more will be installed if
additional equipment is donated from members of the business
community as the project progresses at locations which as the
Whistler Conference Centre. We are searching for a location for a
second terminal in Pemberton also, and hope to find a good way to
provide service to eh First Nations community. The libraries were
chosen based of the following factors:
- convenient and universal access for all members of the community;
- extended hours of operation into the evening;
- willing staff members able to provide help to the public;
- secured location; and
- provision of suitable furniture and effective learning environment.
There are four stages to this project (with a suggested timetable
of December 1, 1995 through February 28, 1977). They include:
1. Development Stage -- December 1995 to February 1996 --
acquire
hardware, lines, and software, upgrade server, identify and
establish access sites, mount community awareness-education
program, and train local trainers and mentors.
2. Start-Up Stage -- March to September 1996 --
offer training
and mentoring at the access site. Help youth, community groups,
entrepreneurs and local businesses to access and explore
opportunities of the information highway. Explore tourism and
economic development opportunities.
3. Evaluation Stage -- October/November 1996 --
evaluate the
success and penetration of the project, and prepare for self-
sufficiency.
4. Self-sufficiency transition stage -- December 1996 to February
1997 --
local business, community or public sector groups take over
the access site and continue training and mentoring. Local network
service businesses offer fee-based access for all interested
citizens.
Volunteer trainers/mentors will be available to assist future
trainers and interested individuals, and to assist representatives
of community organizations with putting information of the Free-Net
system, either into the menu structure or into a gopher server.
Library staff, who are very supportive of the project, will be
available during library hours to assist the public using the
terminals, and to answer any questions. Community volunteers will
also be available at set hours to provide workshops and build
confidence and skill. Senior citizens also have much to offer is
this area.
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Section 4: PARTNERSHIPS
We have enclosed endorsements from a variety of agencies and
organizations which demonstrates a strong interest, and represents
a portion of the demand within the entire area which we propose to
serve. The residents of Pemberton and Whistler, in particular, are
very eager to see the Free-Net fulfil its mandate of service the
entire region.
As you can see, there are a variety of potential users and
opportunities for these partners to develop greater communications
with their counterparts, locally, provincially, nationally and
globally. These partnerships include education institutions,
private enterprise and various government departments. We believe
that the partners in this project will benefit greatly from their
use of this leading technology through increased efficiency and
profitability.
We are extremely grateful for assistance provided to date by the
Sea to Sky Economic Development Commission, B.C. Ministry of Small
Business, Tourism and Culture, District of Squamish, Westel
Telecommunications Ltd., and countless private donors. Without
this help the Sea to Sky Free-Net would not be at the stage it is
currently at.
Due to overwhelming cost increases, our connection to the Internet
through BCNet (who were charging full commercial rates) had to be
terminated. A new no-charge connection through Fonorola i*internet
is imminently being established, and should be in place by the time
this application receives reading.
A Technology Forum was recently held, at which participants
expressed considerable interest in expansion of Internet resources
and access. Partnerships will also be sought with emerging
commercial Internet Service Providers to ensure the long-term
sustainability of the project. These ISPs are fledgling
organizations at the present time, which have emerged partly
through the public response to the existing Free-Net system in
Squamish. The community Free-Net will continue to be a catalyst in
the development of the "high-tech" sector in the region.
The media continue to be very helpful in providing publicity.
Directors and assistants of the Sea to Sky Free-Net Association are
listed below:
Tim Agnew, Bandyland & Associates, Squamish & Whistler
Detlef Rudolph, Tantalus Technologies Inc., Squamish
Kerry Brown, Brown's Video & Electronics, Squamish & Pemberton
Tom Bruusgaard, Tantalus Seniors Centre, Squamish
Robert Fine, Economic Development Officer, Sea to Sky Economic
Development Commission
Meg Fellowes, Councillor, District of Squamish
Howard Kelly, School Trustee, School District 48
John French, Mountain FM Radio
>Jane Cavanagh, Squamish
Phil Turner, Insurance Agent, Squamish
Doug Hackett, Blackcomb Ski Corp., Whistler
System Administrator (volunteer): Jason Fiset
Whistler Liaison: Jim Watts
Northern Liaison: Kevin Holland, Pemberton; Steven Roche, Birken
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Section 5: FUTURE DEVELOPMENT
The goal of the Sea to Sky Free-Net Association is to provide the
residents of Sea to Sky Country with the opportunity to improve
economic development, community development, and education
opportunities, through improved awareness of, training on, and
access to, the information highway at little or no cost to end-
users.
Since contact with the indigenous peoples almost one hundred and
thirty years ago, the communities in the coast mountain corridor
from D'Arcy have sprung up, attempted to communicate with one
another, and failed almost perfectly to do so. We have long known
that we have much in common, occupy the sale corridor, and possess
potential to assist one another in countless ways. Traditional
communication and transport links have self-evidently contributed
to some degree, as has the regional government (Squamish-Lillooet
Regional District). However, the terrain, weather, and cost have
daunted to some degree all of these avenues. Our First Nations
peoples continue to be largely technologically impoverished. The
Sea to Sky Free-Net is the first genuine glimmer of opportunity to
establish a communications hub which will afford unlimited
communication, overcoming socio-economic as well as geographic
barriers.
Connectivity, in conjunction with the technical community (whose
staff have already given freely of time, expertise, and other
resources), and emerging commercial Internet Service Providers,
will unequivocally offer that hub. We have a wide range of
expertise in every vector of computing networking and
telecommunications. This project will see the spill-over of that
expertise to the remotest parts of the corridor, leading to greater
self-sufficiency and the full availability of network services
throughout Sea to Sky Country.
The existing infrastructure has already increased the visibility of
the Sea to Sky region across Canada and internationally, with the
hope of attracting new industries into the region. Through the use
of the Internet, the community plans to further increase the
awareness of the region in order to encourage global investment.
The Sea to Sky Free-Net, with its Internet access, will allow local
businesses to maintain and hopefully enhance present levels of
employment. Numerous new job opportunities have already been
created in the film industry, recreation, and tourism (complete
demographics are on-line through the Sea to Sky Free-Net). Our
database is updated quarterly, and shows the strongest growth in
the areas which effective access to modern technologies.
By the time Industry Canada funding is withdrawn, local business,
community and public sector agencies in each community will have
taken an active role as Information Providers and mentors. The
local network service providers will provide on-going future
support and improved Internet connectivity for all residents in the
community on a fee-for-service basis.
The Sea to Sky Free-Net Association, whose members continue to
devote countless hours of volunteer time, will nurture and
volunteer groups and mentors in Whistler and Pemberton. Our on-
line discussions will further serve to bond all of our communities
into a geographic unity. Consulting advice and training would be
offered on a fee-for-service basis to interested individuals and
organizations in these communities, either by Free-Net volunteers,
or by local training agencies who are well set up to accomplish
this.
We believe our future lies in both tourism and technology
enterprise development. Over the nest decade -- verifiable by any
major university or credible consultant -- this corridor will be
the "hottest" playground on earth, with all that ramifies from that
designation. The communities cited are beads in a necklace, both
geographically and historically. This project will provide the
string which joins them.
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