Corrections or additions?
These articles were prepared for the March 19, 2003 edition of
U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
On the Move: Steelbridge Networks
Trenton has its first wireless “hotspot,” a
restaurant where you can bring your laptop and get wireless access.
It has been installed by Steelbridge Networks LLC, a company founded
by Craig O. Allsopp and Greg Baber, located in Hopewell and Yardley,
respectively.
Allsopp, a Dow Jones Interactive alumnus, has founded three or four
previous companies, depending on which way you count. Internet
Publishing
Group, with news and marketing databases for vertical markets, was
his first venture. He moved it to Newtown and spun off different
markets,
the most profitable being Commercial Real Estate Direct. He and Baber
spent 2002 exploring the energy business. Now Allsopp’s consulting
company, the Harbourton Group, works with Steelbridge.
Allsopp and Baber hope to “unwire” the capitol — to
develop
a high-speed wireless Internet network in Trenton and then expand
to Princeton and Lambertville. Their first wireless “hotspot”
is at Cafe Ole on South Warren Street. The Internet connection —
the 802.11b communications standard known as Wi-Fi — is located
in the Tramp Steamer building on Lafayette Street and uses antennas
to reach users inside the building and at points within a 300-foot
radius. Those at the restaurant — actually anybody in the
immediate
neighborhood — can use this wireless access with their laptop
or handheld computer to surf the Internet for free for now.
Trenton joins Athens, Georgia, and Long Beach, California, in the
attempt to use wireless connectivity to revitalize a town. “We
want to actively partner with the city and with business owners and
landlords to promote Trenton as a technology center,” says
Allsopp.
Harbourton Group, Box 217, Pennington 08534. CraigO. Allsopp. 609-466-3100; fax, 609-499-9408.Top Of PageParag Pruthi ClearedAfter a year and a half of living under the cloud ofsexual harassment charges, Parag Pruthi, CEO of Niksun Inc. at 1100Corwnwall Drive, was declared not guilty of any charge last week.Judge Mary Casey presided over the two-day trial in South Brunswick’sMunicipal Court.”The judge questioned the credibility of the complaining witness,and cited the `airtight’ defense,” says Joseph Bennett, Pruthi’sNew Brunswick-based attorney. The original charges (which includedcriminal sexual assault) had been downgraded to one disorderly personscharge.The complainant, a woman, had been hired as Pruthi’s administrativeassistant in August, 2001, Bennett said. Within six weeks after shestarted work, there were documented complaints from other employeesabout her performance. “She was given a list of priorities inorder for her to retain her job, and six days later she went to thepolice,” Bennett says. A civil suit is pending.It is part of his family’s religious tradition, Parag Pruthi saidin a previous interview, to work hard and leave all else up to God(U.S. 1, April 26, 2000). While he was working to clear his name,Pruthi ceded the CEO position of the company he founded to his father,Satish Pruthi, an entrepreneur who had started several companies.Parag Pruthi is a graduate of Stevens Institute, Class of 1987, andhas a master’s in computer science and a PhD in telecommunications.He worked for Bellcore and founded this company five years ago. Thename of the company is the shortened version of the names of thePruthi’stwo sons. The 60-person firm offers non-intrusive network monitoring,performance and security enhancement, and equipment for IP networks.Niksun Inc., 1100 Cornwall Road, Monmouth Junction08852. Satish Pruthi, CEO. 732-821-5000; fax, 732-821-6000.Www.niksun.comTop Of PageLeaving TownPrinceton Investment Partners, 508 Grimes Drive,Simpson, SC 29681. 864-286-6247; fax, 864-286-6256.Just in time for New Jersey’s hard winter, Tina Schumacher moved the1 Palmer Square office of Princeton Investment Partners to nearGreenville,South Carolina. Schumacher and her husband — who can also workfrom their home — are enjoying winter golf.The owners of the company also have offices in Florida and on SouthMain Street in Pennington.Top Of PageMilestonesJulian Himley Bigelow, 89, on February 17. He helpeddevelopan early computer at the Institute for Advanced Study.R. M. Hanna, 67, on March 8. A nationally known landscapearchitect based in Philadelphia, he did the landscape design for theCarnegie Center.Louis Verbeyst, 84, on March 10. He was the owner ofVerybeystFrench Dry Cleaners on South Tulane Street.Next StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
