Google Plays lay in Peoria

Did you hear the buzz about Google's new initiative to bring 1 Gigabit (Gb) internet service directly to homes and business? To give you a sense of how fast 1Gb of speed is, think of the last song you downloaded off iTunes. Did it take you a minute to download? Two minutes? Well, with 1Gb of speed, you could download 250 songs in 1 second. That may never be a practical use, or even necessary, but just think about what sort of upgrade that would be. Even better, this amount of available speed will inspire people to invent applications and uses that aren't even being dreamed about right now.

Why should you care? Google is seeking a test market, and Peoria wants to be IT! Whichever city Google selects will suddenly be the hottest real estate market in America. Jobs will follow. This is an exciting and important opportunity.

Today is Google Day in Peoria, and we are asking EVERYONE to help show Google that their service will Play in Peoria. While a small number of us will be working on submitting the application, the rest of the community has a role to play, too. Here is how you can help: Go to www.googlepeoria.com and press the big button that says Nominate Peoria NOW! You need to log in with your Google account, or create a free one if you don't already have one. Then just fill out their simple form. Make sure you put "Peoria" in as the City, even if you live somewhere outside our boundaries (we need to be able to tie the nominations to our application).

Second, tell all your friends to do the same thing. Forward this email to everyone in your address book. And check back to www.googlepeoria.com to learn more about upcoming events. Nominations are being accepted through March 26.

Thanks for helping us bring Google to Peoria.

Christopher Setti
Special Projects Manager

City of Peoria
419 Fulton, Suite 207

Peoria, IL 61606

w: (309) 494-8618
c: (309) 472-6291

Peoria Best Metro Area in Illinois for Job Growth

The Milken Institute ranks best cities by wage and job growth. Peoria is the best metro area in Illinois. Peoria moved up overall from number 68 Metro area in the country in 2007 to number 43 in 2008. Of course this was before the "Great" recession, which has negatively impacted everyone.

http://bestcities.milkeninstitute.org/bestcities2008.taf?rankyear=2008&type=state&state=IL

http://bestcities.milkeninstitute.org/

Peoria Economic Development

What does the economic climate for the Peoria area look like in 2010?

On February 25th, InterBusiness Issues will sponsor Economic Climate 2010, an event presented by the Economic Development Council for Central Illinois, the Heartland Partnership and Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce. Multiple presenters will provide updates on healthcare, small business and sustainability issues, as well as a general snapshot of our regional assets and a look ahead at what’s in store for the general economy. The event is free, but reservations are required. Contact Terry at tbest@chamber.h-p.org to make your reservation.

http://www.peoriamagazines.com/perspective

Play in Peoria - High Speed Google Internet Test Community

Google is looking for a test community for the installation of a 1Gb (very fast) high speed internet service. Bill Dennis and Tim Couillard propose that we try to be that community. This is a very good idea. I have proposed to Google that they choose us, and I suggest that the City push for our selection.

Will it Play in Peoria ? We would be a great location because of our long history as a test bed site for a variety of shows and products.

Name:: Bring Google Fiber to Peoria IL
Category:: Geography - Cities
Description:: Google is testing 1Gb high speed Internet service and Peoria should be it's test bed. 1Gb is approximately 100 times faster than our current high speed Internet (Cable Modem and DSL); Open: All content is public.