Cooper City commission approves pilot public Wi‑Fi at Sue Ellen Park, plans fiber upgrade if needed

The Cooper City Commission voted to install a public Wi‑Fi system at Sue Ellen Park and to pursue a fiber‑optic connection later if demand grows, commissioners said at the commission meeting.

Commissioner Smith, sponsor of the proposal, said the city has existing internet service for staff and partners but not an open system for park visitors and youth sports. "We have the capability," Smith said, arguing the city should start at a major park and scale up if usage justifies it.

City staff told the commission the project has two parts: hardware and security to create a properly firewalled public network, and the bandwidth connection that may require an upgrade to fiber if demand increases. "The firewall is related to having the Wi‑Fi open to people," the city manager said, noting that the fixed cost is for the security layer and that bandwidth can be scaled later.

Commissioners debated priorities and logistics, including whether to start with the concession area or to cover more of the park. Commissioner Mallozzi suggested a holistic infrastructure plan so future needs (for example, point‑of‑sale systems or a future fire station) are accommodated rather than installing ad‑hoc service.

After discussion about starting small and monitoring usage, the commission voted in favor of implementing Wi‑Fi at Sue Ellen Park and directing staff to pursue fiber connectivity concurrently if warranted. A roll call recorded the motion as approved with a majority voting yes and one commissioner absent.

The commission asked staff to report back with a more detailed implementation plan, including estimated costs for the initial hardware, security provisions and thresholds that would trigger a fiber upgrade. The city manager said staff has identified pool/tennis and the community center as existing locations with limited open Wi‑Fi and will use operational data from those sites to inform capacity planning.