Consultant To Help Form Technology Game Plan Mcmahon To Address Residents In Three Upcoming Meetings

The high-tech revolution is coming to Sandpoint.

But a consultant to help the city and county plan for it is coming first.

Kate McMahon, a technology consultant from Billings, Mont., will hold meetings Wednesday and Thursday in Sandpoint with political leaders, teachers, business people and the general public.

The meetings are designed to inform the public about the technological possibilities here and help inform McMahon about the needs and desires of the community.

McMahon has been hired through a $10,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture grant secured by the city of Sandpoint on behalf of the Bonner Education and Technology Alliance.

“The goal is to develop a strategic plan for this area,” explained Stephen Drinkard, the city’s grant writer and a member of the alliance.

McMahon will present case studies on how other rural areas have responded and capitalized on digital technology.

Drinkard said Bonner County has plenty of Internet service providers, but could probably use another fiber optic line to the county.

“The real point in inviting this consultant in is we need somebody who’s knowledgable about these matters, to identify the existing gaps in the telecommunications infrastructure and, in the process, create opportunities for partnerships by identifying common interests,” Drinkard explained.

Three meetings are scheduled. The first, for educators and public officials, is from 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday at Sandpoint Community Hall.

The second, for the general public, is from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in the City Forum. The third, for business people, is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Thursday morning in the City Council Chambers.