A proposed wireless network that would extend across State College and onto Penn State's campus could be up and running as early as next year.

Tim Grattan, the borough's information technology director, addressed the State College Borough Council Friday about the idea, which is still in its early stages and would be implemented in phases.

"It would be wise to roll out a phased plan -- first do College [Avenue] and Beaver [Avenue] or Atherton [Street] and Garner [Street], see if it goes well, work out the bugs, and then do a larger area," he said.

Grattan said there would be many benefits to this technology aside from just personal Internet use.

"In the local government, we have a lot of uses for this. We could have wireless parking meters payable by credit card. We could automate things and report on parking situations in real time," he said.

Grattan said the cost and the extent of the service are still unknown. He added that Penn State might be willing to pay to provide the service free to students, but the cost won't be determined until a later stage in planning.

Penn State spokesman Tysen Kendig said it is too early to be discussing exactly who will be splitting what part of the bill, but the service will be a benefit to Penn State faculty and students.

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said that there would also be a study done to determine the feasibility of having wireless Internet in downtown State College. He said Penn State fully supports the borough in this endeavor.

"We want to support the idea of putting this in place, and we anticipate sharing the cost of this study with the borough," Mahon said.

Borough Manager Tom Fountaine also said he was unsure of the cost of installing a wireless network.

"We have yet to determine how it would be funded. Ideas range from free access to a paid subscription," Fountaine said.

Grattan said other benefits of this technology include providing direct access for students, faculty and staff to the Penn State network, improving the experience for visitors to State College and streamlining the interaction between citizens and government.

"This is a positive thing for the downtown -- it's a no-brainer," Grattan said.

Council member Jeff Kern said that he also supports the wireless program.

"The concept of having a wireless network across campus and downtown would be fantastic," Kern said.

Melissa Freed (junior-agricultural and extension education and environmental resource management) said that she would definitely use the service.

"As a Penn State student, I would use it, but I don't think that the cost should affect community members who would not use such a service," Freed said.

Grattan said that a growing number of cities have developed this technology for their areas.

Athens, Ga., offers a citywide wireless network, which is a mix of free service allowing the user to view certain pages and paid subscriptions needed to view others, he said. Philadelphia is also in the process of implementing its own wireless network.

Grattan added that in other towns with similar services, there is evidence of economic development. He said this might be because businesses are enticed to relocate to areas that offer wireless services.

Currently, there are several locations downtown and on campus that offer wireless services. These locations include Irving's Bagels, 110 E. College Ave., Starbucks Coffee, 232 W. College Ave. and parts of the Pattee Library and the HUB-Robeson Center.

Grattan said that the next steps of getting the service up and running include having educational workshops for members of Borough Council, discussing who will fund the service and determining who will have access to it.

Grattan said that he thinks the residents of State College would benefit from the wireless service and would use it frequently.

"The citizens in State College are an educated population and they want and would use this kind of technology," he said.