.floatimg-left-hort { float:left; } .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 12px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} Do you feel lucky? Well, do you?

West Des Moines and Des Moines do. Problem is, so do hundreds of other U.S. cities that are competing to win a spot in Google Inc.’s “Fiber for Community” project, which is aiming to deliver Internet speeds more than 100 times faster than what’s currently available.

Leaders in Greenville County, S.C., recently launched a “We are feeling lucky” campaign – a play on an option on Google’s home page – and Topeka, Kan., well, it just went ahead and changed its name to Google, Kan. for the month.

According to the Associated Press, Cincinnati, Portland, Ore., Baton Rouge, La., and Grand Rapids, Mich., are among the cities planning to submit applications by the March 26 deadline. Closer to home, Ames and Clinton recently threw their names into the hat as well.

Feeling lucky yet?

West Des Moines and Des Moines both launched campaigns about two weeks ago in an effort to gauge and garner support for the Google Fiber project among their residents. Google has pegged community response as one of the key elements in order for a city to get selected.

So what’s all the hullabaloo about?

Google announced in February that it would be selecting communities in an effort to bring blazingly fast Internet access by way of a fiber-optic network to at least 50,000 and perhaps up to 500,000 people at a competitive price. Google said the project has a goal of finding new ways to make Internet access better and faster for everyone, which could allow for advances in high-definition video, remote data storage and real-time multimedia collaboration.

“It will enable new consumer applications, as well as medical, educational and other services that can benefit communities,” Google wrote on its project page.

For West Des Moines, Des Moines and other cities across the country, the opportunity to be involved with the project could help make those cities more attractive to new businesses, new home buyers and their current residents.

Scott Sanders, West Des Moines assistant city manager, is helping coordinate the complex application process. He said one of the biggest reasons for pursuing the deal is the benefits of faster Internet access for smaller businesses, as opposed to larger businesses that can already afford faster Internet service.

“The real impact is going to be on the technology that is available at the home and the small business level,” he said.

“So that would be a very good selling point, to be able to say not only do we want to attract large businesses, but home-based businesses and smaller businesses that would have the opportunity to have more affordable telecommunications.”

Sanders was alerted to the project by interested citizens about two weeks ago, and since has helped mobilize the city to fill out the application. Mike Matthes, Des Moines’ chief information officer, said a group of former Des Moines residents scattered throughout the country started a Web site in an effort to promote Central Iowa as a good location for Google Fiber. The city then teamed up with the group to help put together an application. Both cities will present to their respective city councils for approval on March 22.

Sanders and Matthes stressed, however, that the process will only continue if, through community feedback, it’s found that this is something existing businesses and homeowners truly desire.

“The decision to move forward really needs to come from the community,” Sanders said. “The city government will make sure that we facilitate the application and the eventual decision if they do come to West Des Moines.”

The application asks to demonstrate community support and for venues that Google can monitor to observe the community’s reaction. West Des Moines has asked some citizen groups to speak at the City Council meeting and is also trying to facilitate discussion online on its Facebook page, and both cities are asking their citizens to send feedback to Google. (See sidebar) Matthes also said that Des Moines is contacting some of its more famous natives to do YouTube videos, voicing their support for the city.

“What (Google) is interested in is, does the community want this,” Matthes said. “So it is critical that everyone who would love to see this in Des Moines or any city, they have got to go online and nominate their community.”

Sanders said West Des Moines has a couple of solid selling points that could be attractive to Google. Demographics, Sanders said, such as the level of education, the likelihood that people will use the services and, to some degree, residents’ ability to afford them could weigh heavy in Google’s decision.

Also playing into the decision are the two new hospitals and the existing fiber-optic cable and conduit in the ground already in the West Des Moines area. Des Moines also has a large amount of conduit already in the ground, which Matthes said should help give the city an edge too.

On Google’s Web site, the company said that it is above all interested in “deploying our network efficiently and quickly, and are hoping to identify interested communities that will work with us to achieve this goal. We also want to work with a community where we can bring significant benefits to residents and develop useful proofs-of-concept that can have a broader impact.”

Sanders said that because West Des Moines hasn’t been afraid to implement high technology in the past for its residents and because it has been so conducive to business growth and development, he hopes Google will see few barriers to entry.

“We also have what I would consider a very good mix of growth areas and existing neighborhoods with different demographics that they can demonstrate that if they can make it successful here in West Des Moines, it can be repeatable in other communities,” Sanders said. “And it appears that is their intent, to kind of force the issue across the country for this development.”

And force the issue Google has. Critics of the Internet giant have said the move is pressuring telecommunications companies to spend billions of dollars to provide faster Internet access and to play by Google’s rules.

According to the Associated Press, many of the major telephone and cable TV companies are investing those billions to upgrade their networks, some of which could be much faster than what Google is proposing.

Google has not announced when it will make a decision, saying only that it will be within the year and that the application stage is just the first step as it plans to meet with community leaders and make site visits.

Sanders said the city will continue to promote discussion on the topic even past the March 26 deadline, in an effort to show continued support while Google ponders its decision.

And hey, if all else fails perhaps the cities could look at a name change.

West Des Google anyone?