Mayor Gavin Newsom of San Francisco is frustrated that his plans to have the city WiFi-enabled have been put on hold again by the board of supervisors: This time a ruling could come in July. "I think if this doesn't pass," Newsom said, "inevitably we'll be one of the last cities in the United States to have WiFi."
Newsom went on to say that the city had no backup plan if this fell through. "We've spent two years to put this plan together and we think it's as good as it gets," he said. "Earthlink feels good about it. They're not completely pleased by all the aspects because we went further than others... That being said, Google's still holding on. I don't think they get much from this except a lot of publicity. But this is hardly a company that's wanting for publicity... But I think there's some frustration and I understand that and I hope they can hold out until we at least get a vote up or down, one way or another, at the Board of Supervisors."
For more on SF's WiFi prospects:
- watch this video interview with Newsom over at MarketWatch