By: Robert J. Terry

Baltimore Deputy Mayor Andrew Frank got back to me via e-mail after my deadline for today’s Google fiber network story. I wanted to pass along his insights because they underscore a point the Baltimore technology leaders went to great lengths yesterday to make: Baltimore’s success in getting picked by Google as a test market for its ultra-fast broadband network will hinge greatly on the city’s ability to make the best municipal case possible for the selection.

The grassroots support, while creative and vocal, needs to be just that — support.

“They have to see in the application that this is a multi-pronged approach,” Mario Armstrong told me. “How do we extend this beyond, here are some techies who think this would be great for the city. … [Google] is really concerned with what are going to be the roadblocks to implementation?”

Here’s what Frank, who oversees neighborhood and economic development for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, wrote:

“We are always looking for opportunities to distinguish Baltimore City from its competition. We need to find new and build on existing strengths that retain and attract residents and businesses. The Google high-speed Internet opportunity would achieve those goals, appealing both to residents and businesses. Also, as a technology gadget aficionado, the Mayor gets that having access to the latest technology can influence the choices that residents and businesses make.”

That last point was echoed by Tom Loveland, CEO of Mind Over Machines, a software company that’s thrown its support behind the push. When he and his like-minded high-tech brethren scout neighborhoods for homes to buy, Loveland said one of the first things they research is the “high-speed footprint.”

Meanwhile, here are some of the ways other cities are positioning themselves to grab Google’s attention:

• Washington, D.C.’s CTO is pitching the District’s own fiber network, one that connects schools, libraries and city office buildings, as a “middle mile” loop of fiber lines that would make it easier to bring 1 gigabit-per-second fiber to the doorsteps of residents.
• St. Louis is in the process of “completing a very competitive application,” the mayor’s press secretary tells the Riverfront Times in a Twitter direct message.
• The city council in Palo Alto, Calif., has voted to scrap its bid for federal stimulus funding to devote all its energy to hooking Google as the source for a city-wide high-speed Web network.

What do you think Baltimore should do to catch Google’s eye? Let us know in the comments. The deadline for applications is March 26, so stay tuned.