Internet Archive has bought a 45,000-square-foot building [in Richmond, CA) and the large yard next door at 2512 and 2514 Florida Ave., where Palecek Imports used to have offices for its furniture business.
The San Francisco-based nonprofit plans to store some 3 million books, videos and audio recordings here in a temperature- and humidity-controlled setting. That, in itself, won't create more than a few jobs. But if they can find the funding, Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle said the group wants to hire as many as 500 to 1,000 locals to scan documents into the digital archive.
City officials hope to work with the nonprofit to brainstorm ways to train and employ locals, said Thomas Mills, Richmond's economic development administrator. Richmond's unemployment rate is 17.5 percent as of December, exceeding the state rate of 12.3 percent, according to state data.
"We'd like to get our people involved in learning more about archiving and the digital form," Mills said. "We're trying to look for different ways to create training opportunities."
FreePint Shop:
