Mayor Rawlings-Blake Announces Baltimore City Google Team
Mayor enlists GBC, EAGB, Under Armour and names volunteer ‘Google Czar’
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. Google, Inc. is asking local governments and communities to express interest and provide information by completing a “request for information” or RFI.
“There is no doubt in my mind that Baltimore is the best and most appropriate City in America to invest in new blazing fast internet infrastructure,” Mayor Rawlings-Blake said. “Baltimore is a ‘City of First’s’ and we should be Google’s first choice,” Rawlings-Blake said after noting Baltimore’s rich history in technological innovation.
Mayor Rawlings-Blake enlisted the support of the Greater Baltimore Committee and the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore to assist the already burgeoning grassroots campaign to lure Google to Baltimore by recruiting additional support from larger corporations and institutions. Mayor Rawlings-Blake announced an agreement with Under Armour to supply in-house marketing capabilities to assist the effort.
"Baltimore's business community will enthusiastically engage to take full advantage of this opportunity to achieve a quantum leap in technology resources and enhanced speed capabilities," said Donald C. Fry, President & CEO of the Greater Baltimore Committee. "This project fits Baltimore's business legacy of technology advancements and transformational innovations."
“As a global company, Under Armour stands for performance innovation and we are continuously looking for faster ways to communicate with our core consumer and our employees. Google’s new internet infrastructure will help Under Armour engage the consumer at lightning speed and accelerate our business connectivity around the world,” said Scott Plank, Under Armour Executive Vice President, Business Development.
“Greater Baltimore has emerged as the nation's "knowledge center"... from the best hospital and researchers in the world to the nation's leaders in defense intelligence and communications. This framework provides an opportunity to enhance our connectivity within the region, as well as connecting the rest of the world to our community,” said J. Thomas Sadowski, President & CEO, Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore:
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. Mr. Loveland is the CEO of Mind Over Machines, an IT strategy and application design firm, and co-founder of Gerretson LLC, a cybersecurity firm. In response to the passage of the "tech tax" in 2007, he led a lobbying and grassroots effort that resulted in the unprecedented repeal of the "Tech Tax" before it took effect as law. The Daily Record recognized Loveland as an Influential Marylander in 2009 and an Innovator of the Year in 2008.
“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.”
Mayor Rawlings-Blake released a new YouTube video that will be posted on Bmore Fiber.com, a grassroots website designed to lure Google’s initiative to Baltimore. Mayor Rawlings-Blake thanked Mr. David Troy and all the grassroots organizers and volunteers who created the BmoreFiber movement. Residents can visit http://www.bmorefiber.com/ to find out more about Baltimore’s effort to bring Google to Baltimore, and to join the conversation about this important initiative.
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