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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-06-25 Packet CITY OF UKIAH CITY COUNCIL AGENDA Regular Adjourned Meeting CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBERS 300 Seminary Avenue June 2.5, 1996 M - Motion RC - Roll Call VV -Voice Vote AD -As Desired Tuesday, June 25, 1996, Fiscal Year 1996-97 Buclclet Hearin~1-~ 9:00 a.m. I. Roll Call II. Overview of Proposed Budget by City Manager II!. Review of General Budget Figures A. Fund Summary (P. 3) B. Schedule of Transfers (P. 6) C. Debt Summary (P. 17) D. General Fund Expenditures and Revenue (Ps. 8 & 12) E. Authorized Personnel (p. 21) 10:15 a.m. Break 10:30 a.m. IV. Review of General Fund/Enterprise Fund Accounts A. City Council (p. 31) B. City Clerk/Elections (p. 35) C. City Treasurer (p. 42) D. City Attorney (p.46) E. City Management and Administration 1. City Manager (p. 49) 2. Personnel/Risk Management (p. 53) 12:00 p.m. Break 12:15 p.m. Working Lunch , 4. 5. 6. 7. Secretarial Pool (p. 59) Communifl/Outreach/Public Information (p. 64) Miscellaneous General Government (p.67) Federal Emergency Shelter Grant (p.70) Fixed Asset Replacement Fund (p. 71) 1.15 p.m. Finance 2. 3. 4. 5. Finance (p. 74) Computer Support Services (p. 79) Business Improvement Distdct (p. 84) Purchasing/Warehouse (p. 85) Billing and Collection (p. 90) 2:45 p.m. 8:15 p.m. 8:80 p.m. 5:00 p.m, G, Planning 1. Community Planning (p. 96) 2. Building Inspection (p. 102) M - Motion RC - Roll Call VV - Voice Vote AD - As Desired Break H. Public Safety , 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Police (p. 106) Narcotic Task Force (p. 114) Police Reserves (p. 116) Fire (p. 118) Fire Volunteers (p. 129) Pad(lng District (p. 131) Dispatch (p. 136) Acljoum to Weclnesclay, June 26, 1996, 9:00 a.m. CITY OF UKIAH CITY COUNCIL AGENDA Regular Adjourned Meeting CiViC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBERS 300 Seminary Avenue June 25, 1996 Tuesday, June 25, 1996, Fiscal Year 1996-97 Bud,aet Hearin,cls 9:00 a.m. I. Roll Call II. Overview of Proposed Budget by City Manager III. Review of General Budget Figures A. Fund Summary (P. 3) B. Schedule of Transfers (P. 6) C. Debt Summary (P. 17) D. General Fund Expenditures and Revenue (Ps. 8 & 12) E. Authorized Personnel (p. 21) 10:15 a.m. Break 10:30 a.m. IV. Review of General Fund/Enterprise Fund Accounts A. City Council (p. 31) B. City Clerk/Elections (p. 35) C. City Treasurer (p. 42) D. City Attorney (p.46) E. City Management and Administration 1. City Manager (p. 49) 2. Personnel/Risk Management (p. 53) 12:00 p.m. Break 12:15 p.m. Working Lunch 0 4. 5. 6. 7. Secretarial Pool (p. 59) Community Outreach/Public Information (p. 64) Miscellaneous General Government (p.67) Federal Emergency Shelter Grant (p.70) Fixed Asset Replacement Fund (p. 71) 1:15 p.m. Finance i 2. 3, 4. 5. Finance (p. 74) Computer Support Services (p. 79) Business Improvement District (p. 84) Purchasing/Warehouse (p. 85) Billing and Collection (p. 90) 2:45 p.m. 3:15 p.m. 3:30 p.m. 5:00 p.m. Gl Planning 1. Community Planning (p. 96) 2. Building Inspection (p. 102) Break H. Public Safety I 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Police (p. 106) Narcotic Task Force (p. 114) Police Reserves (p. 116) Fire (p. 118) Fire Volunteers (p. 129) Parking District (p. 131) Dispatch (p. 136) Adjourn to Wednesday, June 26, 1996, 9:00 a.m. JUN g ,:~ 19_,9,6 CiTY CLERK DEPARTMENT ~.,. . ......... ~g~ARTMENT Funding Proposal to The City of Ukiah from The Ukiah Main Street Program, Inc. submitted on June ~, 1996 by Board of Directors Ukiah Mai~Street Program Rick Hansen President 'Paul Shir~min Treasurer ., Kris Rasmussen Secretary Director Table of Contents 1. Executive Summary Page 1 2. Introduction Page 2 3. Antique Car Show Page 3 Budget Page 4 4. Cinco de Mayo Festival Page 5 Budget Page 6 5. Farmer's Market Activities Page 6 Budget Page 7 6. Evaluation and Reporting Page 9 7. Main Street Activities for Alex R Thomas Jr. Plaza Page 10 City Manager City Council City of Ukiah 300 Seminary Avenue Ukiah, CA 95482 Executive Summary Dear City Manager and City Council, June 13, 1996 The Ukiah Main Street Program is a non-profit organization that has been organizing promotional activities and covering design and beautification issues in Ukiah's downtown core since 1987. Its promotional programs bring thousands of people to downtown regularly who use our businesses and enjoy themselves in the downtown, making it a social center as well as a commercial center. Ongoing, regular promotional events are important as constant use of our downtown helps maintain and increase the local tax base as well as creates and maintains steady jobs for the community. This and an esthetically pleasing and historical center creates a sense of community pride and a strong impression for visitors. The above factors also influence personal and corporate decisions to locate in our community. Recently the Main Street Program approved a full-time manager and has more than doubled the number of promotional activities from 10 to 24 in the last year. Main Street continues to work on design and beautification projects in the downtown area. In order to maintain the high level of services that we offer, we would like to respectfully request some assistance from the City of Ukiah. The projects for which we would like assistance include the Fabulous Flashback Antique Car Show, Farmer's Market activities and The Cinco de Mayo Festival. The total amount requested is $2020. In addition, the Ukiah Main Street Program would like to ask the City to allow The Main Street Program to use the Plaza at no charge for our downtown promotional events. Dates and events are included in the proposal. On behalf of the Main Street Board of Directors, I thank you for considering the attached proposal. SincT~ .,2 ~.~~ ~/~ Kris ~asmussen Ukiah Main Street Pro§ram Director Introduction The Ukiah Main Street Program (UMSP) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the revitalization of Ukiah's historic downtown. Since its inception in 1987 UMSP has focused on promotional activities and design review in cooperation with the City of Ukiah and its Redevelopment Program. UMSP's promotional efforts have successfully grown to include some 24 yearly events including the Annual Fabulous Flashback Car Show, Cinco de Mayo Festival, monthly Comedy Club shows, Annual Grand Downtown Wine and Beer tasting, Holiday Season Activities and the New Year's Eve Gala. The Project Manager's position has become a full-time position to carry out UMSP project's. The Design Review Board of Redevelopment Agency began as a Main Street committee and expanded its role to later join the City's Redevelopment Agency. This committee has a long track record of successes with downtown building owners as it offers design recommendations for facades and awnings encouraging compatibility of color, scale, and architectural style while respecting historical significance. Current design and beautification projects for 1996/97 include refurbishing School Street triangle planting and setting-up an inexpensive awning cleaning program. UMSP plays a small role in welcoming new businesses with the City of Ukiah's business development center. UMSP would like to invite the City of Ukiah to contribute specifically in the Annual Fabulous Flashback Antique Car Show, the Annual Cinco de Mayo Festival, and the Farmer's Market Activities. Event: Annual Fabulous Flashback Antique Car Show Description: The Fabulous Flashback Antique Car show held in September is in its 6th year and brings over 5,000 people into downtown Ukiah for Saturday, the main car show day. We expect 350 car entries this year. The event is a 3 day weekend event bringing 1500 people from out of the area. Hotels are typically full this weekend and downtown business owners report high sales. Ukiah's car show is quickly becoming one of the best cars show's in the West, and according to many car show participants, better than the famous Reno Hot August Nights because of the personal touches and small town atmosphere. In the past, organizers talked about moving the event from downtown to the fairgrounds because of its size and the complexity of organizing such a big event in the downtown streets. Over and over again, they were reminded by participants, festival goers and downtown merchants that the event should be kept downtown. Saturday's event included car judging, prize and raffle give-aways, live music, dancing, fashion shows and much more. City Funds for this event would help defray the UMSP's costs to sponsor this event. Objectives for 1996: Organizers are including participation with Raley's Shopping Center, Foster Freeze, Redwood Tree Service Station and Savings Bank as sponsors. Only Foster Freeze was included in the past. We expect about at least a %10 increase in folks visiting the downtown on Saturday due to the added promotion from Raley's Shopping Center, Redwood Tree Service Station and Savings Bank. UMSP will nearly triple the number of festival vendors from 15 to 40. This will be done using vendor lists from other events, classified advertising and word-of-mouth. Amount Requested: $550 The requested amount is one third of the Main Street Program's costs Disc Jockey $ 60 Sound System $533 Band $540 Staff time 30 hrs @ $15/hr $450 Total Budget $1583 The above represents one third to one fifth of the total costs for the Band, DJ and Sound System. Event: cinco de Mayo Festival Description: The Cinco de Mayo festival, a traditional Mexican celebration, is organized mainly by volunteers from the Mexican Community. Now in its third year downtown, the festival has grown to become a multi-cultural event. With the help of UMSP, the Cinco de Mayo Committee is expanding the event to attract more community-wide participation and attendance by including other non-traditional entertainment and vendors as well as full-time bilingual announcers. It has replaced the Street Fair that previously coincided with the Memorial Day Parade. Objectives for 1996: We plan to increase community participation by including a popular band appealing to a broad group of Ukiahans (such as reggae, rock or world beat). There will be an English and Spanish speaking announcer throughout the entire festival. Amount Requested' $1 0 0 0 Program Budget for 1997 Main Band Non-traditional Band Sound equipment Children's Activities supplies Local attractions (Ballet Folklorico, other dancing) announcer expenses Posters misc. $1000 $1ooo $ 500 $ 200 $ 700 $1oo $15o $ lOO $3750 'Event: Farmer' Market Description and Objectives for 1996: UMSP supports the Farmer's Market as it parallels our goals of bringing people downtown on a regular basis and making the downtown a viable commercial and social center. Today, the Farmer's market boasts 15-25 (depending on product availability) vegetable, fruit, plant and flower vendors. We are currently working with the farmer's to coordinate other activities that compliment the market and bring more people downtown. For 1996 we are organizing many of these activities for the first Tuesday of every month. These include music in the plaza on the main stage, art-in- the plaza, & cooking demonstrations. We anticipate the live music on the main stage to bring up to 150 people visiting the market and relaxing on the plaza by September. Giovanni Leonni, a retired famous chef, will create delicious dishes with fresh fruits and vegetables: an event sure to bring an added 50-100 people downtown. Art-in-the- plaza is a coordinated effort between Main Street, Farmer's Market and the Ukiah Valley Art Center which invites fine artists to showcase and sell their work in the plaza in conjunction with the Farmer's Market. In addition to first Tuesday events, Main Street with the permission and cooperation of the Farmer's Market Association is diversifying the products sold to include vendors selling prepared foods and fresh-off-the farm foods that do not fit into the Farmer's Market Association requirement such as fresh eggs, olives, nuts, barbecue sauces, tortillas, chorizo, cappuccino drinks, sandwiches etc. We are networking with other farmer's markets, chef's markets, the department of agriculture for potential vendors and organizational ideas. UMSP manager is sending letters and follow up calls and visits to potential vendors. We anticipate at least 5 new speciality product vendors this year. UMSP has also agreed to set out barricades each week announcing the market and the street closure to lessen the burden on Conference Center Staff. The costs involved in the above activities are mostly staff time with other minimal costs such as mailing, copies etc. We would like to ask for the City's help to support the staff time it takes to organize and market these special events. Amount Requested: $ 4 7 0 Program Budget Staff Time (7 hrs month/5 months yr/$15 hour) Classified ads, mailings, copies etc. Chamber Mailing $525 $130 $75 $730 Main Street's planned activities for Alex R. Thomas Jr. Plaza The Ukiah Main Street Program would like to request, in addition to the above request, that the City of Ukiah waive the fees for the use of the downtown Plaza, Pavilion and Main Stage for the following dates for City Fiscal Year 1996-97: 1996 July 2, Tues, 3-6 pm, Main Stage for Music and Art-in-the-Plaza Aug. 6 Tues, 3-6 pm, Main Stage for music, Art-in-the-Plaza and cooking demonstration Sept. 3 Tues, 3-6 pm, Main Stage for music, Art-in-the-Plaza and cooking demonstration Oct. 1 Tues, 3-6 pm, Main Stage for music, Art-in-the-Plaza and cooking demonstration Sept 21 Tues, All day Main Stage and Pavilion for Fabulous Flashback Antique Car Show 1997 May 3 Saturday, All day Main Stage and Pavilion for Cinco de Mayo June 3, Tues 3-6 Main Stage for music and Art-in-the-Plaza Evaluation and Reporting Evaluation: All three above mentioned projects will be evaluated according to their objectives. The Car Show objectives will be evaluated by counting actual number of participating vendors. In addition, informal evaluations from the participants and organizers after the event will provide information as to size and overall success of 1996 Car Show. Our success in achieving a multi-cultural event for Cinco de Mayo Festival will be measured by the estimated number of community members turning out the day of the event as well as informal feedback from participants, organizers and vendors after the event. Evaluation of progress of the Farmer's Market currently includes weekly discussions with UMSP and the Farmer's Market Association. In October we will count the number of new vendors that have become a part of the market. Reporting: UMSP will submit a report to the City Council and the City Manager in June of 1997 as to the objectives achieved for the three programs, or as desired by the City of Ukiah. 10 HENRY E. BATES LIBRARY DIRECTOR MENDOCINO COUNTY LIBRARY HEADQUARTERS 105 NORTH MAIN STREET LIKIAH, CALIFORNIA 95482 TELEPHONE (707) 463-4491 June 19, 1996 Mayor Fred Schneiter Ukiah City Hall, Ukiah, CA 95482 Dear Mayor Schneiter' Ukiah Branch Librarian Donna Kerr and I met with City Manager Candace Horsley on June 18 to explore continued funding for reference services at the Ukiah Branch Library. She eloquently explained your financial situation and suggested I write to the City Council asking for consideration for funding for the new fiscal year. Last year funding was reduced from $45,000 to $22,955. The results were a decrease in reference services at the Ukiah Branch Library. Considering the difficult financial time the City of Ukiah faces the same level of funding would assure professional reference assistance at the Ukiah Branch for 20 hours a week. I have enclosed a brief proposal that explains our services to Ukiah residents. Your support has made a big difference in direct service to the residents of Ukiah. Thank you for your kind assistance. Very truly yours, ltenry E. Bates c/c Candace Horsley FORT BRAGG BRANCH 499 Laurel St. · Fort Bragg, CA 95437 (707) 964-2020 WILLITS BRANCH 390 E. Commercial St. ,, Willits, CA 95490 (707) 459-5908 PROPOSAL TO CITY OF UKIAH FROM MENDOCINO COUNTY LIBRARY, UKIAH BRANCH LIBRARY For the past six years the City of Ukiah has supported the Ukiah Branch Library reference services. The award letter of two years ago from the Mayor and City Manager praised "efforts to enhance the intellectual resources available to our community." The letter also said "We look forward to continuing our working relationship with you to improve the living environment throughout the valley." During the last year we have met those efforts elaborated in the letter although in a limited way. We had to reduce our reference services to twenty hours a week as a result of the drop in funding.. This has resulted in a 31% drop in reference questions answered for this past year. The formula for the last three years for funding the Ukiah Branch Library was based on a registration sample of Ukiah residents. An earlier survey revealed that 48% of the registered card holders were city residents. That percent was applied against the cost of operating the Ukiah Branch Library which is $110,000. A recent survey of library card registrants reveals that 52% are city of Ukiah residents. The most heavily used service for Ukiah residents is the reference and information services. In addition to adult use, hundreds of elementary, middle, and high school students, and some college students use the reference department. A clear majority of these students live and go to school in Ukiah. Local teachers are assisted in preparing lesson plans around materials available at the library. Since more and more reference questions are being answered by electronic means, the City of Ukiah monies continue to assure that we have trained knowledgeable staff who will assist patrons in this often intimidating and confusing world of information retrieval. PROPOSAL TO CITY OF UKIAH FROM MENDOCINO COUNTY LIBRARY, UKIAH BRANCH LIBRARY For the past six years the City of Ukiah has supported the Ukiah Branch Library reference services. The award letter of two years ago from the Mayor and City Manager praised "efforts to enhance the intellectual resources available to our community." The letter also said "We look forward to continuing our working relationship with you to improve the living environment throughout the valley." During the last year we have met those efforts elaborated in the letter although in a limited way. We had to reduce our reference services to twenty hours a week as a result of the drop in funding.. This has resulted in a 31% drop in reference questions answered for this past year. The formula for the last three years for funding the Ukiah Branch Library was based on a registration sample of Ukiah residents. An earlier survey revealed that 48% of the registered card holders were city residents. That percent was applied against the cost of operating the Ukiah Branch Library which is $110,000. A recent survey of library card registrants reveals that 52% are city of Ukiah residents. The most heavily used service for Ukiah residents is the reference and information services. In addition to adult use, hundreds of elementary, middle, and high school students, and some college students use the reference department. A clear majority of these students live and go to school in Ukiah. Local teachers are assisted in preparing lesson plans around materials available at the library. Since more and more reference questions are being answered by electronic means, the City of Ukiah monies continue to assure that we have trained knowledgeable staff who will assist patrons in this often intimidating and confusing world of information retrieval. Last year at the Ukiah Branch Library there were 9,199 reference questions answered. Monthly average of public access computer usage is 475 patron sessions. Public access computers are used by an array of patrons. For example small business owners, mostly Ukiah based, use these superior computer services for ad copy, designs, brochures, business plans, desktop publishing, etc. A recent purchase of a CD-ROM based phone directory that covers the whole country is a valuable tool serving Ukiah patrons. Since it allows searches by SIC number, it is an excellent business marketing tool. Several Ukiah patrons have taken advantage of it and have given glowing reports. In recent months the reference staff has been fielding an increasing number of requests for business information. Reference staff report that these questions fall into three categories: (1) requests for factual information- e.g., demographic data for the local market area, names and addresses of suppliers, and names and addresses of business trade associations. (2) more complicated requests about specific topics- e.g., starting a mortgage banking business, and if the books or magazines or pamphlets are not available we seek the material from other libraries through interlibrary loans.. (3) people seeking guidance in the preparation of business plans - we can help by recommending good books on the subject or by referrals to local experts. Futurist Toffler writes about the value of knowledge in the business field: "Today, all businesses, large and small, operate in a power field in which the three basic tools of power - force, wealth, and knowledge are constantly used ... and failure to understand how they are changing is a ticket to economic oblivion." (Toffler, Power Shift, P.33-4.) Frustrated with their limited success in locating data and information, the entrepreneur requires the services of a trained Last year at the Ukiah Branch Library there were 9,199 reference questions answered. Monthly average of public access computer usage is 475 patron sessions. Public access computers are used by an array of patrons. For example small business owners, mostly Ukiah based, use these superior computer services for ad copy, designs, brochures, business plans, desktop publishing, etc. A recent purchase of a CD-ROM based phone directory that covers the whole country is a valuable tool serving Ukiah patrons. Since it allows searches by SIC number, it is an excellent business marketing tool. Several Ukiah patrons have taken advantage of it and have given glowing reports. In recent months the reference staff has been fielding an increasing number of requests for business information. Reference staff report that these questions fall into three categories: (1) requests for factual information- e.g., demographic data for the local market area, names and addresses of suppliers, and names and addresses of business trade associations. (2) more complicated requests about specific topics- e.g., starting a mortgage banking business, and if the books or magazines or pamphlets are not available we seek the material from other libraries through interlibrary loans.. (3) people seeking guidance in the preparation of business plans - we can help by recommending good books on the subject or by referrals to local experts. Futurist Toffler writes about the value of knowledge in the business field: "Today, all businesses, large and small, operate in a power field in which the three basic tools of power - force, wealth, and knowledge are constantly used ... and failure to understand how they are changing is a ticket to economic oblivion." (Toffler, Power Shift, P.33-4.) Frustrated with their limited success in locating data and information, the entrepreneur requires the services of a trained librarian. It is difficult for the average Ukiah citizen to keep abreast of the current changes in information services. The library column in the Ukiah Daily Journal regularly covers "The CyberCenter" located in the Ukiah Library and credit is frequently given for the help the City of Ukiah has provided in staff assistance for patrons using the five computers, two printers and a scanner. This "CyberCenter", the busiest corner of the library, exists due to the combined efforts of the Ukiah Valley Friends who provided the computers and the City of Ukiah, who helps us provide the necessary qualified staff assistance. The City of Ukiah received a tremendous benefit from the Newsweek article of June 26, 1995 (copy enclosed). The city was put in the national limelight in a very positive way. This story was worth thousands of dollars of free publicity. Granted the City of Ukiah did not fund the Redwood Free-Net but no one has quibbled with the Ukiah emphasis. Assistance to the Ukiah Branch Library will directly benefit the economic and educational well-being of Ukiah residents. We hope the City of Ukiah can help us deliver the service and improve the living environment throughout the valley. librarian. It is difficult for the average Ukiah citizen to keep abreast of the current changes in information services. The library column in the Ukiah Daily Journal regularly covers "The CyberCenter" located in the Ukiah Library and credit is frequently given for the help the City of Ukiah has provided in staff assistance for patrons using the five computers, two printers and a scanner. This "CyberCenter", the busiest corner of the library, exists due to the combined efforts of the Ukiah Valley Friends who provided the computers and the City of Ukiah, who helps us provide the necessary qualified staff assistance. The City of Ukiah received a tremendous benefit from the Newsweek article of June 26, 1995 (copy enclosed). The city was put in the national limelight in a very positive way. This story was worth thousands of dollars of free publicity. Granted the City of Ukiah did not fund the Redwood Free-Net but no one has quibbled with the Ukiah emphasis. Assistance to the Ukiah Branch Library will directly benefit the economic and educational well-being of Ukiah residents. We hope the City of Ukiah can help us deliver the service and improve the living environment throughout the valley. Wired in the Woods 0nlino: The world of modems, e-mail and bulletin boards has been a mostly urban phenomenon. Now a few local cyberjunkies are changing that. BY KATIE HAFNER -~ I $YLVESTER' GA''A COM- '" munity of 5,000, is the,./- qu~tessential [small ~h~ni~g town: The main thoroughfare consists of a Hardees, a Dairy Queen and a couple of diners. "We're such a small bump in the road that driving through Sylvester is like hitting an armadillo at 60 miles an hour," drawls local businessman Da- vid Register. "You'd hard- ly notice." Bump or no, Sylvester is in the vanguard of the informa- tion revolution. Since last September, the town has had in place its own community computer network, called the Worth County-Sylvester Free- Net. With some 400 regulars, the local network offers every- thing from USA Today to the latest news on federal farming legislation to information on the movies playing in theaters in Albany, a half-hour drive away. Throughout the nation, rural communities determined not to be sidelined in the Intbrmation Age are getting wired. About a dozen networks like the Sylves- ter system have gone online in the past year, and $0 more will be up by the fall. Unlike the commercial services, these net- works tend to be staffed by vol- unteers, and are flee. The Free-Net concept is the brainchild of Tom Grundner, the 49-year- old president of the Cleveland-based Na- tional Public Teleeomputing Network, a nonprofit organization that promotes non- commercial online services. An educator by training, Grundner started his first commu- nity network in 1986, in response to local demand for health-care information. Called the Cleveland Free-Net, it mirrored a city's infrastructure, complete with "school house," "town hall" and "post office." Free of charge, the network was an .instant hit. Since then, in addition to the rural projects, Grundner has assisted in the formation of 110£;1':11 MASTIIOIANNI I~on't plaoe your ad herin Founding father of the Free-Net phenomenon, Tom Grundner some 39 urban Free-Nets, including sever- al in Europe. Grundner and others liken the effort to wire the nation's remote pockets to the ru- ral electrification program of the 1930s. But unlike FDR's ambitious federal effort, the cyberwiring of rural America is largely grass-roots. Communities that start Free- Nets are often responding to frustration over the expense of subscribing to a com- mercial service, or just hoping to spark awareness of the potential of new commu- nications technology. "People in rural areas are just beginning to understand what a 'modem is and what it can do," says Kent Guske, a high-school social-studies teacher turned tech specialist. Guske started the Sylvester network with $11,000 in local do- nations after hearing about Grundner's project. Large commercial online services have stepped up their efforts to bring rural America up to speed. Logging on to a com- mercial service from a small town often requires a toll call. America Online, CompuServe and Prodigy recently began offering an 800 number, charging from $4.80 to $6 per hour for calls. But add that JUNE ~6, ~995 NEWSWEEK 45 NEWSWEEK JUNE ~6, 1995 to the regular user fees and the costs can mount. Signing on for straight Internet service is even harder. Netcom, for exam- ple, an Internet service provider based in San Jose, Calif., decides where to operate 'based on population density and local com- puter sales. ~ Most rural communities, it appears, are interested in more than simply going on- line. "Just setting up an Internet connection out in the middle of nowhere doesn't do anything for you," says Grundner. "It has to serve as a collection point to interact, to do things." Everything from building the net- work to using it and maintaining it brings JAMES D. WILSON--NEWSWEEK Grass-roots gabfest: Redwood Free-Net's Pat Hunt local citizens together. "I call it an electron- ic barn-raising," says Steve Cisler, a senior scientist at Apple who manages the compa- ny's Library of Tomorrow program. "Peo- ple getting together for a common good." Ken Bandelier, a 70-year-old retired bi- ology professor in the tiny town of Dillon, Mont., was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1994. Frustrated by the dearth of local support groups, he discovered an online group through Big Sky Telegraph, the local Free-Net. At the same time, his wife, Nellie, a 65-year-old former elementary- school teacher, grew fascinated with the Internet. Before long, she was spending five hours a day online. The Bandeliers are now Internet crusaders, spreading the good word like religious witnesses. Nellie writes a column for the local paper called "Nellie's Internet Notes." Many rural Free-Nets have close ties to the local library, which usually maintains public-access machines for residents who don't own computers. In 1990 Apple Com- puter gave the Mendocino County (Calif.) Public Library a grant for a multimedia CD-ROM project on Native American cul- tural history. From that project, Pat Hunt, a ST-year-old reference librarian in the li- brary's branch in Ukiah, a town cradled in a mountain valley, got the idea to set up a local network. News of the service traveled quickly, mostly by word of mouth. "People were logging on so fast that all my plans for publicity fell apart," says Hunt. The most popular parts of the system are e-mail and discussion groups. The nets depend heavily on volunteers. Hunt estimates that he spends 15 unpaid hours a week on the care and feeding of the Red- wood Free-Net. In the six months since the network start- ed, Hunt has seen the system lain ~the gamut from flamefests to gender wars. One iS-year- old provocateur calling himself Bubba X. Huhuna caused tem- porary anarchy with his rude comments, while some women who started an exclusive group sparked retaliation from a fa- ther-son contingent. In both cases, Hunt lost considerable amounts of sleep. 'Tve gone from information provider to community builder," he says. Small towns: Few rural Free- Nets have Internet connections that give thmn 24-hour access. To keep costs down, most re- ceive their Internet "feeds"- electronic mail and Usenet newsgroups-in batches peri- odically throughout the day. Grundner's Free-Nets are by no means the only rural datafication proj- ects. Similar networks have been estab- lished independently elsewhere-among rural libraries in upstate New York, in small towns in the Rocky Mountains and in the desert towns of California. Funding the rural nets is a growing prob- lem. Grundner's shrink-wrapped model system, complete with a Power Macintosh and modem cables, costs about $18,000 to set up. The Commerce Department's Na- tional Telecommunications and Informa- tion Administration has supplied grants for rural computing projects, which have helped start the Free-Nets coming online this fall. But the NTIA program isn't likely to endure past next year. To sustain their networks, communities will likely be forced to begin charging users. And the users seem willing to pay, at least a few dollars a year. They're learning that at this feast, there's no such thing as a free byte. With JENNIFER TANAKA and TORIANO BOYNTON