Free Wi-Fi for Polo Grounds Residents
On September 1, NYCHA launched a free Wi-Fi program in the common areas of Polo Grounds Towers in Harlem. Through this new pilot program, NYCHA provides free Wi-Fi access to residents in the courtyards, parks, and other outside areas of the development. The Wi-Fi service is also available in the resident association and property management offices.
By introducing free Wi-Fi in common areas, NYCHA aims to make educational, economic, employment, health, and other governmental services more accessible to its residents. The Polo Grounds Wi-Fi project also intends to improve NYCHA’s communications with residents and help increase their digital literacy.
To better understand how its residents access and use the internet, NYCHA customized a “landing page” for the free Wi-Fi at Polo Grounds: Residents using the Wi-Fi will be asked to complete a survey about their online practices. After the three-month pilot period, NYCHA will evaluate the project based on residents’ feedback and internet service quality to develop best practices for future implementation of free Wi-Fi at other NYCHA developments.
Polo Grounds Towers is one of the first NYCHA developments to get free Wi-Fi in its common areas. If the program at Polo Grounds works well for residents, the Authority will explore how it can bring free Wi-Fi to other NYCHA developments.
Nearly one-third of all households in New York City do not have a broadband subscription at home. Additionally, more than 1.5 million New Yorkers have neither a mobile connection nor a home broadband connection. The pilot program at Polo Grounds Towers complements a larger effort to help close this digital divide and bring new internet connectivity options to NYCHA residents. In January 2020, the City announced the New York City Internet Master Plan, a first-in-the-nation plan that provides the roadmap to universal broadband in New York City. The City is also entering into agreements with high-speed internet service providers that will bring free or low-cost internet to thousands of NYCHA residents.
