Information Please

The Downtown Kiosks Go Live

October 2019

This is surely the mark of a Smart City: Unveiled at the end of September, downtown Gables now has four information kiosks. Roughly the size and shape of the monoliths that appeared in the movie “2001: A Space Odyssey,” they are likewise intended to bring intelligence to those who touch it. Put your finger to the screen and it reveals icon links to info about transportation, restaurants & bars, events, shopping, activities, public parks, and more. We gave it a test run and loved the feature that showed the location and walk time to nearby retailers. You can even use it to take a massive selfie that you can send to yourself.

All that’s needed now is some fine tuning of the information. While mostly accurate, it did identify Chicken Kitchen as a Korean restaurant (ouch) and said that the Monday night jazz sessions at the Open Stage start at midnight on Tuesdays. The city says the bugs will be out soon.