WHITTLESEA council has put its hand out for more than a million dollars in grants to support the rollout of the National Broadband Network.
An interactive online memorial about the 2009 bushfires, a “virtual village” for isolated senior citizens, and broadband training are all on the council’s wishlist.
The council applied to federal and state governments for the grants after last month’s announcement of the broadband rollout.
The council has asked for up to $100,000 to set up an online memorial. Online memorials usually feature messages, videos and pictures of deceased relatives and friends.
The council wants up to $375,000 to develop a “virtual village” program to help seniors stay engaged with the community, and has applied for $620,000 for training to help businesses and residents make the most of the new services.
Grants will be announced in the next two months.
Epping, Whittlesea, Woodstock, Eden Park, Bundoora, and parts of Kinglake will be included in the federal government’s $43 billion NBN over the next three years.
Mill Park will be connected in a year, while South Morang will be
hooked up to 100 megabits per second optic fibre in November.
Whittlesea mayor Stevan Kozmevski said the project would provide more scope for residents to work and study from home.
“Broadband is an important and integral part of our daily lives – businesses, schools and homes are reliant on it,” he said.
-Fran Cusworth
