Insider Access

Hi, my name is Tom Loveland. I’m a fellow citizen who, purely by chance, has had uncommon access to City Hall. I’ve become friends with many of Baltimore’s power brokers, and seen inside this mayoral campaign.

Many of you wish you had more information as you prepare for the voting booth on Tuesday. I’ve been privileged with a front row seat. So I feel a responsibility to share what I’ve seen.

First, your vote REALLY matters in this election. I’ll explain why. Next, the current mayor is not the answer. As the Baltimore Sun wrote, “It seems she’s working to manage the city’s decline rather than to spark its rebirth.” And though the mayor is known at least as a solid manager, I think you’ll be shocked by what I have to share. Finally, Otis Rolley is an outstanding candidate. Not just “the best we can find,” but truly outstanding. I’ll talk about him, too.

So let’s get on with it!

Four years ago, during the Tech Tax repeal, I hired, and became friends with, key operatives in this city who shape public opinion, raise money, and get chosen candidates elected. They’re very good at what they do, and I learned firsthand how articles, editorials, even endorsements, show up in newspapers. It’s no accident. And it’s certainly NOT all straight, uninfluenced opinion.

Later, when the mayor came into office, she named me to her Economic Transition Team and later appointed me Google Czar. I worked closely with the most loyal members of her inner circle. And I still collaborate with senior members of her team on efforts to bring high-speed broadband to Baltimore.

How the Game is Played

Last November, when my power broker friends wondered about my own loyalty to the current mayor, they sat me down and explained how Stephanie was going to win.

Understand that they also are very good at filling campaign war chests. They know where the money is and how to get it – in bulk – trading on understandings about access, influence, and more.

They had already lined up developers, contractors, and others who are dependent on City Hall for their livelihood, to raise an intimidating amount of money, and send a message that “the race for mayor is all but over,” even before it began.

Well, despite all the mayor’s advantages – and they are formidable – this election is nowhere near decided.

Your Vote REALLY Matters!

In fact, entering this past weekend, as many as HALF of all likely voters remained Undecided! Tuesday’s outcome is unclear. And with voter turnout expected to be low, each vote matters even more than normal.

So vote! It REALLY matters!

What else do the polls say?

Well, the Baltimore Sun reported two weeks ago that the Mayor has a very strong lead. But extensive, professional polling by her challengers doesn’t match up. It’s weird. Both Otis’ and Catherine’s campaigns show 50% Undecided.

And we aren’t seeing support for the mayor on the street. Some citizens readily tell Otis and Catherine to their faces that they support another challenger. But almost nobody speaks up for the mayor.

So I don’t know what to tell you about the numbers. I guess it comes down to who shows up at the polls on Tuesday.

Elect the Change You Want to See in Your City

And speaking of who shows up, more than one senior staffer has quit this mayor’s team, listing aloofness, lack of imagination, and lack of ideas as contributing to their decision.

I believe Stephanie simply is incapable of being the change Baltimore needs. As the young daughter of a respected politician, and then through her own seventeen years in office, she has become intimate with all the players of Smalltimore. The politicians, the developers, everybody. She dined with them at her father’s table. She still knows them today, their agendas, how it’s all supposed to go down. She’s personal friends with everyone whose interests might be ruffled if any part of “how we do things around here” changes. Again, she’s simply incapable of being the change Baltimore needs.

Yesterday some friends of mine said, “She didn’t sweep house when she took office; she kept some good people. So she seems like a good person for the job.”

Yes, she did keep some excellent people, like Deputy Mayor Chris Thomaskutty. But she also saw to the departure of widely-respected Deputy Mayor Andy Frank, and installed her friend since kindergarten. And she passed up superstar Health Commissioner Peter Beilenson for another candidate who has left many people shaking their heads.

You Call That an Endorsement?

The Baltimore Sun’s endorsement of the current mayor I find ludicrous. The Sun agrees that, “…she has failed to display a compelling vision for how to move Baltimore beyond the crisis mode it seems to perpetually be in…,” and “… [she] gives the impression that she is working to manage the city’s decline rather than to spark its rebirth.”

Her saving grace? She “…has remained steady, calm, and focused.” So she gets the nod. Wow. What a sad endorsement.

To be fair – and this is the remainder of their case – The Baltimore Sun also points out her strong relationship with Governor O’Malley (thanks to her father helping O’Malley get elected mayor,) and her “managerial ability.”

First, let me assure you, Governor O’Malley will work closely with whoever becomes mayor: He doesn’t want any bad news coming out of Maryland’s largest city these next few years as he looks toward national office.

Management 101

And about Stephanie’s managerial ability, well, she may not have pizzazz or vision, but at least we all can agree she’s a solid manager, right? Right?

What about the $6M of Federal healthcare funds for Baltimore’s HIV population that’s gone missing? The Baltimore City Health Department told providers, like Johns Hopkins and Moveable Feast, that the money didn’t come this year. These providers began cutting services, and complained to the press. The Fed saw the articles and started an investigation, because it HAD sent over the money. Nineteen million dollars! $6M is missing and unaccounted for, so the Feds rightly froze the rest. This is money that many of our fellow citizens’ very lives depend on. Money for medical care, child care, transportation, food services, and more.  But it’s all held up now, due to City mismanagement.

What about the $4M of Federal grants for lead paint abatement that HUD shut off this year? Baltimore has received these funds for many years. But this year HUD shut us off, because the Baltimore City Health Department mismanaged the most recent grant. So potentially we’ll have more poisoned children who can’t learn entering our classrooms and even the juvenile justice system.

These are management catastrophes! $23M fumbled. The result of hiring, and keeping, weak people.

One City Hall insider quoted in the City Paper, said, “These are old friends of hers since forever, now in high positions. She can’t fire them—an effective leader can fire anyone.” And the mayor admits that she has never fired a friend.

Even after the HUD debacle, all she did was transfer the program to another department.

How is this accountability?

Intro to Management

Let’s look at simpler things: Timeliness and Transparency.

What about the school rehabilitation report? Last fall, the ACLU determined that our schools need serious rehabilitation. The mayor formed a commission and promised a report by February. It’s September now, almost a year later, another school year begun with bad schools. She still has not released the report, and provides no meaningful response when asked about its progress.

The mayor is celebrated for her ethics reform and transparency. So why has her spokesperson stonewalled questions from multiple reporters going on 12 days now?

I certainly hope none of the mayor’s challengers ever do “match her managerial ability” if this is what it looks like.

Come on, Baltimore! We can do better than this!

Otis Rolley

Now, about Otis Rolley, The Baltimore Sun says, “Of the challengers, Mr. Rolley comes closest on [vision and specifics.]” His thesis, “…that Baltimore needs to change the way it’s doing things, if it is ever to stop stumbling from one crisis to the next, is appealing.” “He has released the most detailed and comprehensive set of policy proposals of any candidate.”

This doesn’t surprise. As the country’s youngest city planner, Otis produced this city’s first comprehensive citywide plan in nearly 40 years. He knows ALL our neighborhoods. He’s also a celebrated and proven executive who’s managed major city departments with thousands of employees, firing people who needed to go, and hiring others where efficiency called for it.

And it’s not just me and the Baltimore Sun who see promise in Otis. Polling shows nearly HALF of likely Decided voters support Otis.

So did three very different mayors: Schmoke, O’Malley, and Dixon all hired Otis and gave him more and more responsibility because he got stuff done!

And last summer, Otis sat one-by-one with the 200 or so influential people in this city who cared a year ago who the next mayor would be. People who know the current mayor, mayors before, and Otis. They repeatedly said, “Of course, you’re the better mayor. But it’s Stephanie’s turn.” Well, Otis and I and many others don’t believe in turns. We believe in excellence. And I hope you do, too.

Baltimore’s Brighter Future

Otis is a student of cities, not just a daughter of one. He knows what is keeping people from living and working in Baltimore: bad schools, unsafe streets, and property taxes that are too high. Otis is the only candidate discussing real plans to take these on, even as others have avoided them for generations.

If we’re going to move ahead and claim a brighter future for Baltimore, we need to change the way we do things. And it CAN work!

• Remember Philadelphia in 1985? The police firebombed MOVE headquarters, and the city was considered unsalvageable. A few years later Ed Rendell became mayor, attacked the crushing poverty, and today Philadelphia is a different city.
• Remember New York City in the 1980’s? Rampant crack and crime, and unsalvageable. Giuliani became mayor in 1993, began turning it around, and today New York is a different city.
• Think of Newark, New Jersey, and all the good that young Mayor Corey Booker is doing. Newark, too, is making strides toward becoming a better city.

One man, one mayor, the RIGHT mayor, CAN make ALL the difference.

Vote for a Better Baltimore. Vote for Otis Rolley for Mayor.

And urge others to do the same! Remember:

Friends don’t let friends vote status quo!

Yes, it’s true. Baltimore’s mayor has raised far more money than her challengers.

But let’s do a little analysis.

With ALLLL her advantages – decades of political loyalty to her family, 15 years in the public eye on the City Council and as Council President, constant media coverage, the full engaged force of Governor O’Malley’s top fundraisers, the power to approve or reject contracts, and more – the mayor’s team convinced 1000+ people to write checks supporting her campaign. That’s 1000+ “votes” of support.

But many, many of her checks were “gimme’s”. Colleen Martin-Lauer places one call to, say, a law firm, and collects 10 to 20, or more, “individual” checks. (Members of said law firm are told by their superior, in no uncertain terms, how much they are expected to contribute, and when. That’s how it works.)

So not all of the mayor’s 1000+ “votes” were voluntary. And many that were went to her simply because she’s the incumbent: City contractors, developers, lobbyists, and others rush to support the incumbent, no matter who it is, because their livelihoods depend on good relations with City Hall.

This puts the mayor’s authentic, non-coerced “vote” count well below 1000.

Otis Rolley

Meanwhile, Otis Rolley, a first-time candidate with two odd names and nothing else, inspired 900+ people to write him checks of support. None were bundled. None coerced. No one is expecting favors. In other words:

Otis has earned more authentic “votes” than the mayor. Who knew?!

THIS IS A REAL RACE!

Granted, the mayor’s average check amount is larger than Otis’. And that money will buy more television time, probably purchasing more votes. But Otis is running a strong ground campaign, and clearly voters are responding to Otis.

Which strategy will win?

It’s up to you!

Tue Aug 23 – Deadline to Register (or temporarily switch parties)

Tue Sep 13 – Primary Election Day

Visit the Elections Board website  for Dates, Locations, Early voting, etc.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

• The  mayor has raised significantly LESS money than her predecessors had by this point in their races. And she already has spent the majority of it.
• The other candidates lag well behind in fundraising. Senator Pugh’s total includes a $75,000 loan that must be returned in two weeks, and much of her other money is left over from an unopposed Senate campaign. Most of Landers’ money is loans from himself and his campaign manager.

Originally published in the Baltimore Business Journal:

In business and sports, part of winning includes fielding the best players. There are no “turns” except those earned by top performance. And even top performers must face challengers. It keeps them sharp and ensures the team plays its strongest game.

It should be the same for our city. Even more so, considering the great challenges we face. But so far, this mayor’s race is more about “turns” and war chests than excellence.

When asked last summer, Baltimore’s influentials repeatedly said, “Otis [Rolley] is the better mayor.” They said it without hesitation or doubt. Yet they often followed with, “But I can’t support him now. It’s Stephanie [Rawlings-Blake’s] turn. And her father was such a good man. If Otis will wait, I’ll support him 100 percent next time.”

What? Politeness takes precedence over excellence?

Apparently so. Those who benefit from the status quo are using the incumbent’s huge fundraising advantage — filling a war chest significantly from developers and others who seek influence with the city — to cast this election as a foregone conclusion. The mayor’s campaign is leading with financial intimidation instead of vision or qualifications.

Recall that if Mayor Sheila Dixon hadn’t resigned, today Rawlings-Blake would be merely one among the crowd of hopefuls. Instead, because of that accident of history, Baltimore’s power brokers are attempting to “install” her — the mayor we never elected — for four more years.

Does this bother anybody else?

We owe it to ourselves and to Baltimore’s best future to critically evaluate all the candidates against our city’s great needs. It’s not impolite. It’s not disrespectful. It’s professional. And it’s important.

Baltimore needs the best leadership it can get. Whereas a capable manager handles issues of the day, a true leader envisions entirely better days and leads the way. Think of Gandhi, Steve Jobs, Coach John Wooden, each a transformational leader who changed the game. Baltimore needs a transformation, too.

Do we have such a leader among the candidates? I believe we do. Challenger Rolley has a clear vision for our future.

And while Rolley’s biography is impressive — raised in a dysfunctional home, earning academic honors and a master’s degree in city planning from MIT, becoming the youngest big city planning director in the country under then-Mayor Martin O’Malley — it pales in comparison to his understanding of Baltimore and his passion for the city to do better.

Otis knows we need to grow our economy. He will make the tough decisions that elude career politicians. And he can win this race: D.C.’s mayor Vincent Gray beat the incumbent despite a 4-to-1 cash advantage.

For those who remain shy about challenging the mayor, know that if she campaigns on ideas and we elect her, she will be a stronger leader for having met the challenge, and Baltimore will be a stronger city.

So trust the process and engage the candidates. Let’s have a true city conversation and elect the best possible mayor. We owe each other this much.

Baltimore Business Journal, Friday, April 8, 2011 (behind subscriber paywall)

If Go Long Wireless has its way, 60%-70% of Baltimore’s residents soon may have another option for video, data and voice service to the home.

The company plans to perform a limited demonstration of its technology from atop the World Trade Center in downtown Baltimore in late March. Based on “line of sight”, the signal would reach roughly 60%-70% of Baltimore residences once all planned transmission points are implemented.

Two pluses of the system are fast deployment and low capital cost. Once business matters are worked out, deployment across the city could be measured in months. And the lower capital investment could translate into attractive consumer pricing.

But data transmission speeds will never match true wired fiber. Although very competitive in today’s terms  – as high as 60 Mbps downstream — the transmission speed will never match 200Mbps, 1Gbps, even 10Gbps that is possible with fiber.

Still, it’s an intriguing option. 4Mbps, 15Mbps, 60Mbps may be all the speed that many Baltimore residents need for a long time. And the system would go a long way toward bridging our digital divide.

I look forward to the demonstration in March!

Are you intrigued? If it comes to town, do you think you might want to subscribe?

Remember, it’s line-of-sight from the transmission point. So this would be another lottery in your life! Just your luck, the roof of your home or apartment might be in the shadow of a church spire or some other obstruction.

Go Long Wireless has prepared highly detailed maps of the city, so a phone call, or maybe an online search — while you hold your breath in anticipation — will let you know whether or not you’re in. Assuming the system gets deployed at all.

Tom

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Go Long Wireless, Ltd.
www.golongwireless.com

Go Long Wireless plans to launch a WIRELESS demonstration site which will feature a “Triple Play” of Video, Data and Voice as a Fiber to the Home alternative

Baltimore, MD – February 10, 2011 – Go Long Wireless, Ltd. is planning to demonstrate a wireless delivery method that is capable of providing over 500 channels of high definition and standard definition video plus broadband data downstream of 60 Mbps as well as VoIP services. This FCC licensed wireless MVDDS (Multichannel Video and Data Distribution Service) spectrum was specifically allocated for distribution of very high capacity broadband (data and video) with the intent of increasing competition in the marketplace and bridging the digital divide by providing relatively high speeds without the extensive infrastructure and capital requirements of wireline systems. MVDDS is the largest capacity wireless system in the United States with a broadcast potential of up to 3.6 Gbps per site.

Go Long Wireless is presenting MVDDS as a low capital intensive operational solution for delivery of “triple play” services (Video, Data, Voice) by highlighting it as a low cost alternative to fiber. A wireless option with increased capability is a very compelling product and Go Long Wireless is focused on attracting operators in areas where a business case for actual FTTH deployment is either too expensive and/or too time consuming. The MVDDS solution may also complement existing FTTH or cable networks by extending their reach to areas that have not yet been cabled, while utilizing the same content source (backbone and video head end).

Go Long Wireless owns and manages 46 MVDDS wireless spectrum licences throughout the United States. Each license covers an entire Nielsen DMA (Designated Market Area). The company’s intent is to demonstrate this wireless delivery system to potential operators around the country that are looking for a very large capacity, high quality and cost effective delivery method for Video, Data and Voice Services.

Go Long Wireless will offer these potential operators a complete turnkey solution, including, but not limited to, leasing rights to the licenses as well as engineering and business solutions.

“With consumer demand for high-speed Broadband at an all time high, we believe now is the right time to bring to market a wireless solution for rural and regional TELCOs, local Cable Companies, Utility Companies, and ISPs (Internet Service Providers) who want to deliver competitive home services at a fraction of the cost of actual wireline fiber” — Bruce Fox, CEO of Go Long Wireless.

For more information on the MVDDS technology, license leasing opportunities and the upcoming demonstration scheduled for March, visit www.golongwireless.com.

Not the Google Czar

One of these days, Google will announce where it plans to deploy Google Fiber. Presumably one or two or three communities will be selected for a major deployment. And some 1,100+ won’t.

Before Google’s big announcement, you should know that, win or lose, Baltimore’s broadband future is brighter than most.

In September, Maryland won $115M in Recovery Act funds to build the One Maryland Broadband Network, which will connect each Maryland county, and Baltimore City, to one another and the Internet via a 10 Gbps fiber network. Did you catch that? 10 Gbps. That’s TEN times FASTER than the already “supersonic” 1 Gbps fiber footprint Google plans to deploy that we’ve all be salivating for!

The One Maryland pipe is not a “maybe” thing. It really is coming to Baltimore. The entire network will be complete before the end of 2013.

But there IS a difference: Google plans to deploy 1 Gbps fiber to tens of thousands of private door fronts. One Maryland Broadband, on the other hand, will connect “only” 1,006 community institutions across the state, 40-some in Baltimore City. Sadly, it won’t be coming to your house or apartment anytime soon.

So we’d REALLY love to have both One Maryland AND Google Fiber to get lickety-split service to your home and office. But if Google doesn’t select Baltimore for its first deployment, I’ll settle for a 10 Gbps consolation prize any day.

We [Rico Singleton, Baltimore's new CIO; and the Baltimore Broadband Task Force, which I co-chair with Greater Baltimore Committee President & CEO, Don Fry] are studying how best to leverage this big data pipe and Baltimore’s other broadband assets for the greatest good. Can we connect to more institutions? Can we deploy deeper into the community? Can we think about door fronts and roof tops?

No answers yet, because we’re in the middle of it, but we’re seeing potential opportunities. In the meantime, let me share some thoughts about Google Fiber.

But first, I have to jump in:

I love Rico Singleton, Baltimore’s new CIO! Not only does he “get it” regarding broadband and what we all want to see for our city, he’s pushing it. In fact, he’s responsible for it. We are very fortunate to have him engaged from the inside. I thank Christopher Thomaskutty, Deputy Mayor and another favorite, for hiring Rico and making it a priority for the City to figure out a broadband strategy for its agencies and citizens. Christopher and Rico are great partners in this effort.

Will Baltimore win Google Fiber?

“PROBABLY NOT”: 1,100+ communities submitted proposals. Google has suggested it will make only a few awards. So the basic odds of winning are very low.

“MAYBE”: The fact that Baltimore City owns and controls its own conduit system is a very strong differentiator. Most every other city is dependent on its local cable and telecom providers who own and operate their conduit, and who may or may not wish to cooperate with Google.

“UH OH”: Some people suspect Google wants to “spread the wealth”, making its fiber investment only in locations that have not received American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus funds. If so, that knocks out Baltimore.

“ON THE OTHER HAND”: We made the case that because of our other broadband assets, Google will get a bigger bang for its buck by investing here.

“HARD TO SAY”: Google will self-fund the buildout of its fiber footprint in the winning locale(s), but it won’t give away the actual broadband service. Google will charge a competitive monthly fee, and wants to know that wherever it builds the system, a high percentage of residents will sign up. Hmm.

We don’t know what Google is thinking. Conduit is king? Spread the wealth to non-ARRA recipients? Get the biggest bang for the buck? So it’s impossible to predict the outcome of this competition.

We made our best pitch. After the pitch, we raised Baltimore’s stature in Google’s eyes via our Fiber Symposium, press conferences and other activities. That’s all we can do. Well, you can keep your fingers crossed!

In the meantime, we continue taking responsibility for our own fiber future. When Google makes its announcement later this year, not many in the group of unselected cities will be as fortunate as Baltimore, with all of our existing fiber assets AND a 10Gbps pipe coming to town!

Baltimore Broadband: A Quick and Partial History

Feel free to scan earlier posts related to Google Fiber and Baltimore broadband activities over the last year: Google Czar, Plan B, Fiber Symposium, Unsung Heroes

Dave Troy and I have been well recognized for our efforts related to Google Fiber and Baltimore Broadband in general. Here are many of the unsung heroes:

Google Fiber Response

BmoreFiber team

It all started with Patrick Roanhouse, who  first alerted the local tech community to Google Fiber. In no time, members of Beehive Baltimore and the Emerging Technology Center (ETC) were hard at work. Charles Martucci designed the community website and Google showcase. Jon Lesser and Jim Novak built them. Rob Wray shot and produced videos. Emil Volcheck and crew coordinated support from neighborhood associations and wrote much of the web copy. Gary Davison prepared most of our winning application for Philadelphia’s Gigabit Genius Grant. And on and on: Lokesh Dhakar, Chris Goodman, Howard Libit, Buzz Merrick, Jason Pyeron, Mario Armstrong, Robin Truiett-Theodorson, Gordon Steen, Heather Sarkissian, Chip Dizard, Alison Haygood, John Ferguson, and others.

Andy Frank, Babila Lima – Baltimore City

(Then) Deputy Mayor Andy Frank and (then) Special Assistant Babila Lima led the City’s internal efforts, gathering responses to detailed questions about geography, population, conduit, pole attachments, regulations, and so on. Andy and Babila, and Dave and P.J. and I worked together intensely, nights, Sunday’s and all the rest.

P.J. Glennon

P.J. Glennon was an absolute gift. She took total ownership of the formal response, devising strategy, drafting answers, and herding cats.

Don Fry – Greater Baltimore Committee

Don Fry, President & CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee, worked tirelessly, lining up endorsements from leading area corporations, political figures, and others.

Brad McDearman, Shannon Landwehr – Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore

Shannon Landwehr provided the precise facts and figures we needed just when we needed them. Brad McDearman (now at the Brookings Institute) applied wisdom and wordsmithing talent to hone the “essay” portions of our response.

Baltimore Broadband

Sam Zappas

Though Sam Zappas and Mark Wagner both provided significant support to the Google Fiber response, above, I list them here because they haven’t stopped!

Sam Zappas is a key strategic thinker and champion working quietly and continuously behind the scenes. Sam and Dave are super sharp and the main brains behind our efforts to bring a brighter broadband future to Baltimore. All the best ideas are theirs!

Mark Wagner and BmoreFiber Technology Advisory Committee

Mark Wagner, Managing Partner of Litecast, Baltimore’s largest “dark” fiber provider, has worked tirelessly as chair of the BmoreFiber Technology Advisory Committee, collecting our community’s fiber knowledge and responding to Baltimore Broadband Task Force data requests.

Kaliope Parthemos, Kumasi Vines – Baltimore City

Kaliope Parthemos, Deputy Mayor, and Kumasi Vines, Special Assistant, have been delightful to work with and very supportive of our Fiber Symposium, the Broadband Task Force, and related matters.

Senator Barbara Mikulski

$115M in Federal funds for the One Maryland Broadband Network, to build more than 1,200 miles of ultra high-speed broadband connecting ALL of Maryland’s counties, says it all!

Broadband Task Force

About 20 diverse leaders of the Baltimore community have been gathering regularly since October 2010 to assess the City’s broadband assets, envision a brighter broadband future, and identify a path forward.

Ira Levy – Howard County

Ira Levy, CIO of Howard County, is the “main man” behind One Maryland Broadband Network. Thank you, Ira, for your vision, and for 10 Gbps to Baltimore!

Christopher Thomaskutty, Rico Singleton – Baltimore City

Christopher Thomaskutty, Deputy Mayor (initially a CitiStat analyst under former mayor O’Malley) hired Rico Singleton as Baltimore’s first full CIO in four years. Both “get” it and are pushing for an intelligent, city-wide broadband strategy. They prove the power of public private partnerships.

To you in this list, and others yet unnamed: You are making a major contribution to our city’s future. THANK YOU!

On April 22nd, about a month after Baltimore submitted its response to Google’s Fiber for Communities request for information, Sam Zappas, Dave Troy, P.J. Glennon and I met for an outdoor lunch in Fells Point to discuss next steps.

We concluded our best strategy would be to raise Baltimore’s profile on Google’s radar to help our application stand apart. Sam said, “I’ve been thinking…. We should hold a symposium.”

Six short weeks later, in partnership with the Mayor’s Office, the Greater Baltimore Committee, and the University of Baltimore, we produced:

Agenda:

• Were we selected? When do we find out?
• What IS high-speed fiber? Why do we want it?
• How will it impact business growth in Baltimore?
• How can all of Baltimore’s stakeholders leverage it?
• If Google doesn’t select us, how do we get fiber here anyway?
• Learn how other cities have already deployed high-speed fiber.
• Discover the benefits they are reaping right now.
• Come learn how Baltimore can do the same, and more.

Presenters included John Horrigan from the FCC, an author of the National Broadband Plan; two mayors teleconferenced in from cities that already deployed ultra high speed fiber; Dennis Lynch, formerly of Verizon, who had overseen most of Verizon’s FiOS deployments around the country; and our own panel of experts on Baltimore broadband, from JHU, UM Baltimore, Constellation Energy, and more.

Attendance was amazing! 200+ individuals from all walks. Foundations, universities, large corporations, small businesses, Comcast, Verizon, non-profits. Techies, state legislators, policy wonks, reporters, CIO’s. DBED Secretary Christian Johansson. University System of Maryland Chancellor Brit Kirwan. Senior Advisor to the President of Johns Hopkins, Aris Melissaratos.

Some of the symposium attendees. Over 200 people attended.

At the end of the day, I announced the creation of the Baltimore Broadband Task Force, a Mayoral task force I’d been promoting at City Hall.

It’s vital to Baltimore’s future — to EVERY city’s future — to get the fastest connectivity possible to as many citizens as possible. Or else the world will pass us by, with innovation, opportunity, and job creation happening elsewhere.

City Hall bought in and put the Mayor’s imprimatur on the task force.

It was time for a vacation. We would kick things back in gear around Labor Day.

On March 26, 2010, Dave Troy and I were with the Mayor as she pressed “Send” on Baltimore’s Google Fiber application that we, City staff, and multiple volunteers had worked on so hard over the prior month. [creative presentation|website|City press release]

Two steps out of the Mayor’s office, I had a thought,

“What if Google comes to Baltimore for a site visit?!”

We needed to prepare a site visit plan so we would make the best possible impression. Our work had only just begun!

Immediately, another thought,

“What if Google DOESN’T come???”

For weeks, Google Fiber had dominated the conversation across our entire city, from boardrooms to classrooms to dining rooms. Everyone was discussing ultra high speed fiber and what it could mean for Baltimore and our lives. And we wanted it.

More than that, we recognized that any city that DOESN’T implement high speed fiber will fall behind the rest of the world.

It was simply unthinkable and irresponsible to place Baltimore’s future economic competitiveness solely in the hands of Google’s “lottery”.

Sitting back and hoping Google selects your city is not a strategy.

We needed Plan B.

And so Dave Troy, Sam Zappas, and I began thinking about:

• Plan A, Part 2 – raising Baltimore’s stature in Google’s eyes
• Plan B – bringing high speed fiber to Baltimore without Google

Out of this came:

• Baltimore Fiber Symposium
• Mayor’s press conference highlighting Baltimore’s conduit system
• Baltimore Broadband Task Force
• Grand Prize from Philadelphia’s Gigabit Genius Grant Awards

On March 11, 2010, Baltimore Mayor Rawlings-Blake officially named me Baltimore’s “Google Czar” to help complete the city’s official response to Google’s Fiber for Communities Request for Information.

Intrigued by the “czar” title, TechCrunch picked up the story and it traveled around the globe about 6.5 times.

At the press conference, I encouraged Baltimore to “imagine”, and I pitched Google:

From the Baltimore City Mayor’s Office:

Today, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake enlisted the support of top business and technology leaders and organizations to assist in Baltimore’s grassroots effort to attract Google Fiber for Communities an initiative that asks American cities and municipalities to compete for up to a billion dollars in fiber optic network infrastructure delivering speeds nearly 100 times faster than most internet connections.

Mayor Rawlings-Blake also named Baltimore technology entrepreneur Tom Loveland as a volunteer “Google Czar” charged with working with the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development and Neighborhoods to complete and submit the RFI by the March 26th due date.

“Baltimore is a tinderbox of innovation. Google Fiber is the spark, a game-changer that could turn Baltimore into a global innovation leader,” Mr. Loveland said. “Mayor Rawlings-Blake understands that and I’m honored to serve the City.”

Initially I turned down the role. Artificially inserting me as a figurehead in front of a highly effective group of volunteers who were already underway with a natural leader, Dave Troy, could demoralize the group and destroy the effort: “Why is HE getting the limelight? We’re doing all the work!” Plus broadband is one of Dave’s many areas of expertise, whereas I know little about it. But Dave and I kicked it around and soon concluded that it made a lot of sense. We have different strengths and partner well. And it was a big job with plenty to go around. So I signed on.

My very first action was to enlist Don Fry, President & CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee, to help gather support from the broader business community. And then the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore for the same, and to help us write up the best case for Baltimore.

Then I dove in with the team. Large. Talented. Dedicated. All volunteer. Working with purpose toward a shared vision of a better Baltimore for all. Creating web sites. Shooting video around town. Driving social media. Chasing down use case ideas and writing them up. Brainstorming. Researching. Managing our written response. Coordinating with City Hall.

And on and on to a crescendo on Friday, March 26, the submission date.

Just setting things up here, folks.