NEWARK, NJ — A new, public wi-fi network in the Ironbound section of Newark is hooking local residents and business up with free internet access.

The pilot project – which officially launched on Wednesday – is located at 104 Ferry Street. It will offer free internet hotspots along Ferry Street from Union to Merchant streets. The service is completely free of charge with no hidden fee, according to Newark city officials.

Funding came through public and private dollars in collaboration with Newark and Ironbound businesses. Designing, building and maintenance of the system came to about $65,000. "Newark has the fastest fiber in the world in limited areas, but our strategy beyond that is to empower residents and businesses in every neighborhood with access to high-speed internet," Mayor Ras Baraka said.

"High-speed internet at no or little cost is an important element in reaching our goal of making Newark an empowered, educated and equitable city," Baraka continued. "Newark is now a very attractive place for job creating technology businesses to locate, and widespread 10-gig and higher internet access will accelerate the growth of tech jobs here." Baraka and other stakeholders unveiled the completed Newark Fiber/Ironbound Business Improvement District Wi-Fi Pilot Project on Wednesday, including Deputy Mayor for Economic and Housing Development Allison Ladd, East Ward Council Member Augusto Amador, Invest Newark President and CEO Bernel Hall, City of Newark Chief Information and Technology Officer E. Steven Emanuel, Ironbound Business Improvement District (IBID) Executive Director Seth Grossman, and TeknoGRID President Marland Jenkins.

Newark began setting up public wi-fi networks in each of the city's five wards last year.

In October 2018, the city rolled out its first LinkNWK kiosks in Military Park, which deliver free wi-fi, offer mobile device charging, make phone calls to anywhere in the U.S. and allow access to a plethora of municipal services, maps and directions.