Universities are all looking at GRID computing as a way of building power iron out of the spare cycles of ad hoc machines, (but on a much more integrated fashion than SETI style distributed computing).
Now think about how many PCs are GRID could get hold of if Universities set up and provided the technical support to local Community Wi-Fi initiatives in the surrounding area, with links to hubs out as far as 20Km if good line of sight.
Thousands.
I see this as low cost opportunity for universities (as with a kernal of support the local enthusiasts will look after their own connections) to provide a real benefit that the market is unlikely to do. One that will also help the ordinary local have a direct connection with their university - also very good local PR.
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Neat idea! However, "technical support" does have a labour-intensive feel attached to it.
The thought of linking PCs as far out as 20km might not be as difficult as it seems - I'm assuming that most 802.11b mesh networking solutions out in the market (commercial & open source) should be able to handle this requirement. MIT's working on RoofNet, while another popular one seems to be LocustWorld.
As you've mentioned, the key here is the university - great potential for computing needs & the community!