SmartRegions.US Pilot Project

Our pilot project is under way …

We will be building a cross-section of participants starting second quarter 2019.

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Pilot Project – Concept Overview

SmartRegions.US wants to execute a proof of concept project. If we can demonstrate that rural communities would benefit from the technology and the presence of the Suite of Telecommuting Applications we can finally reverse the last seventy-five years of rural decline. As the qualifications specify, our plans are to deploy all three elements of the Distributed City Model i.e., transit, technology and community development. Critical Mass is critical so it is fairly ambitious.

Phasing Process:

1st Half 2019

Solicit Seed Money to fund first two years.
Seek initial partners for Suite of Telecommuting Applications (SoTA)

3rd Quarter 2019

seek a Statement of Interest from rural America MPOs.

4th Quarter 2019

Select the mini- Region to conduct the pilot
Seek MPO support for Deployment Partnership

1st Half 2020

Conduct Occupational Assessment in the MPO community and the 3 trade centers
Perform the Community Audit in participating Trade Centers and Small towns.
Conduct Continuity Workshops in support of Workforce Virtualization Program
Seek private sector participation for the Regional TeleCenter
Develop the Community Alliance
Develop strategies for Community TeleCenter buildout
Select Personal Rapid Transit and solicit bids for construction
2nd Half, 2020 Secure funding and proceed
2nd Half, 2021 Full operations with mini-Region, Solicit Participation to expand the systems

Participant Qualifications:

Piloting a regional project with so many systemic components is not an easy task. However, SmartRegions.US believes that it is possible if we can find the right test bed. The pilot would establish:

Three trade centers in thirty miles of each other
One trade center within 50 miles of a major metropolitan area
At least 5 small towns for each trade center
Participation agreements from the three trade centers and the counties in which they, or any of the small towns. are located. In addition:
- Each chamber of Commerce
- Each newspaper
- Each telecom provider
- At least 3 major employers
- And several churches, schools (9-12 and Higher Ed) and service organizations in each trade center

Prerequisites:

The Trade Center ‘Cluster” would have to be selected
The Broadband Collaborative would have to be created,
Funding would have to be secured.

Outcomes:

PRT Network between three trade centers and a metro area (minimum)
1 Regional TeleCenter; 3 Community TeleCenters and up to 15 Neighborhood TeleCenters
Community Portals functioning in all participating communities (18?)