The Brickyard Collaborative in Lynn mobilized its members in spring 2020 to manufacture and provide masks and other protective gear for health workers treating COVID-19 patients.
So it’s no surprise the Collaborative reached out to help the community again by launching a campaign to provide free internet wireless networking (Wi-Fi) to help Lynn’s small businesses market themselves.
The Collaborative drew on state grant money and its members’ technical knowledge to survey local businesses and determine their marketing needs. In October, they set up two Wi-Fi access points in Central Square for businesses and arts organizations.
Collaborative Executive Director Ted Dillard said additional plans call for establishing access points on Market, Munroe and Union streets to broaden marketing platforms for businesses on those retail-heavy streets.
The Collaborative epitomizes the ingenuity and creativity that defines Lynn. Members use woodworking, robotics, and high-technology machining equipment in the Collaborative’s Linden Street space to produce business- or arts-oriented creations.
The organization’s interest in working with Lynn Community Health Center and other care providers during the pandemic’s early months showed how Collaborative members put their organization’s name into action.
Dillard envisions the small business Wi-Fi project eventually intersecting with City of Lynn efforts to improve Wi-Fi access throughout the city.
We would like to suggest the Collaborative’s efforts offer an opportune time for city officials to assess citywide Wi-Fi needs.
City officials might consider using some of the $6.9 million in American Rescue Plan Act money, initially allocated to the city, or Lynn’s share of an estimated $7 billion to $9 billion in federal infrastructure repair money headed Massachusetts’ way, to assess citywide Wi-Fi needs and map out strategies for providing top-notch wireless networking.
An initiative on this scale could address a multitude of needs made even more urgent by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.
Businesses across Lynn — including ones launched in living rooms and basements by people who left jobs during the pandemic to become entrepreneurs — need wireless networking access.
Restaurants and arts organizations that endured months-long shutdowns when pandemic social distancing precautions were in place need the marketing boost Wi-Fi access can provide.
The time for Lynn to improve Wi-Fi access, and internet accessibility across the city is now, with broad-minded Mayor-elect Jared Nicholson just over a month away from taking office and millions of federal dollars destined for the city.
Let’s strike while the iron is hot and build on The Brickyard Collaborative’s innovative initiatives.
