On the ISP-Wireless list, Kimo Crossman of webnetic.net reports on a new development in the San Francisco Wi-Fi standoff:

"Google wants the ability to create their own Wi-Fi network on light poles in addition to the 300k free tier they are underwriting on the EarthLink network," he writes. "I've been saying for over a year that muni Wi-Fi is all about Pole real estate -- essentially access to the limited vertical assets in the city which have 24-7 power and are not decorative or blocked by trees or buildings. Everyone knows that current Wi-Fi isn't very powerful -- this is about getting your right-of-way for the next generation."

A PDF file outlining Google's demands can be downloaded here.

"When Brian Roberts of DTIS, the city IT department staffer that is performing the negotiations, testified at a public hearing on Friday 11/17, he didn't reveal this major development even though the discussion happened at least a week earlier," Crossman writes.