ROCHESTER - Monroe  County  Executive  Maggie Brooks and City of Rochester Mayor Robert Duffy  today announced the formation of a partnership between Monroe County and  the  City  of Rochester to encourage internet-search company Google to build an experimental fiber network in Monroe County.

“Throughout  local  history,  the people of Monroe County have always stood together  in  a  spirit of cooperation to achieve a brighter future for our entire  community,”  said Brooks. “As Monroe County now faces an incredible opportunity  to create jobs and grow our local economy, I am proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder  with  area  leaders  in  support of this project. Our community will certainly be facing national competition, but I am confident Monroe County can be a world-class destination for Google.”

“The  Greater  Rochester  area  has  a  proud  legacy  of being a leader in education,  health  care  and high-technology and we are the perfect market for  Google  to  demonstrate its implementation of an ultra-fast Internet,” said  Duffy.  “There are endless practical applications for this technology in our community and we are eager to remain on the cutting edge.”

Google  recently  announced the launch of its fiber optic trial, which aims to  improve  internet access by testing ultra-high speed broadband networks in  one  or  more  select communities across the nation.  The networks will deliver  internet  speeds  more  than  100  times  faster than the national average, at 1 gigabit per second, and service will be competitively priced.

Google’s  fiber  optic  trial  has the potential to bring jobs and economic investment to any community slated for the project.

To advance the trial, Google issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking interested  municipalities. Representatives from Monroe County and the City of  Rochester  are preparing a joint response to this RFI. Local resources, weather  conditions, construction methods, and building regulations will be factors  in  Google’s  decision. County Executive Brooks has also contacted leaders   of  the  County’s  constituent  towns,  villages,  colleges,  and universities to garner additional support for the application. The deadline for the RFI response is Friday, March 26, 2010.