Historic Downtown Joins the New Age

By: Lindsey Noel

Historic downtown Mount Pleasant has magnificent shopping, unique cultural attractions, scenic parks, and now Wi-Fi.

Although Wi-Fi has been available for about three years, the signs for downtown Mount Pleasant now proudly boast that there is a wireless local area network where students, consumers, business owners, and any downtown visitors can access the internet at their convenience.

“We really just wanted something more to offer the property owners, students, and everyone who visits,” explains Michelle Sponseller, downtown development director for the city of Mt. Pleasant.

CMS Internet, a local internet provider, helped make this happen by volunteering to set it all up. The cost was relatively little for the city who then only pays for the antennas, which cost around $1400.

Although downtown Mount Pleasant is beautiful and historic, the historic part causes some problems with the Wi-Fi.

“There are certain areas that the signal doesn’t go to because of the logistics,” says Sponseller, “a lot of the buildings downtown are made of brick which causes the signal to bounce and it can become very weak.”

In general, the farther inside a building you are the less signal you get, but if you are closer to the street or a window the signal is more clear.

"I like that it is free but the connection is not very good. I constantly have to reconnect," says Sarah McManus, a Central Michigan University Senior from Mount Pleasant.

The city presently owns six Wi-Fi antennas that are strategically placed around the city. There is a plan to add more antennas this spring.

“I love it when I see people out on the grass or picnic tables or at local restaurants lounging with their laptops and taking advantage of the Wi-Fi,” says Sponseller, “It’s nice.”