Detroit's Cultural Center to offer free and public outdoor WiFi in 2021 thanks to $500k grant

By Jerilyn Jordan

Dec 28, 2020 at 11:22 am

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Detroit's Cultural Center to offer free and public outdoor WiFi in 2021 thanks to $500k grant

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Finding WiFi in one popular Detroit hub will be a whole lot easier next year, thanks to a $500,000 digital initiative grant.

The Knight Foundation awarded $500,000 to Detroit's Cultural Center Planning Initiative to install free, reliable, and public outdoor WiFi throughout the Midtown area, which includes museums (Detroit Institute of Arts, The Charles. H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit Historical Museum, and others) as well as the Wayne State University and College for Creative Studies campuses and the Detroit Public Library, WXYZ reports.

“Not only will this grant support the installation of free, public Wi-Fi in the district, it will also support collaboration, risk-taking, and experimentation within Detroit’s Cultural Center for place-based, digital transformation,” Sue Mosey, Executive Director of Midtown Detroit, Inc. and CCPI leader, said in a release.

“The COVID-19 crisis has created a moment of opportunity for digital transformation,” she continued, adding that the ultimate goal of Cultural Center's digital expansion is to create more welcoming spaces for the public to learn and grow, as well as to solidify the connection between cultural institutions.

The grant will also fund pop-up video screens that sync up to respective programming from Detroit's cultural institutions, as well as rebranding the Cultural Center and offer workshops aimed at developing new digital experiences. Though the digital strategy will be unveiled in phases over the next 10-15 years, the installation of WiFi is expected to be completed next year.

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