Google announced today that they have chosen Kansas City, Kan., as the city to begin their ultra-high-speed municipal broadband project.  Kansas City will first see the new developments next year, and Google is already looking for additional communities to join the test.

Just one hour east of the city of Topeka, KS that changed their name for the month of March last year to Google, Kan., to try and get Google to choose the capital city.  On April 1, 2010, Google returned the favor by changing the display on their website to TOPEKA. 

Last year more than 1,100 communities applied for Google’s ultra-high-speed municipal broadband project. 

“In selecting a city, our goal was to find a location where we could build efficiently, make an impact on the community, and develop relationships with local government and community organizations,” Google wrote. “We’ve found this in Kansas City. We’ll be working closely with local organizations including the Kauffman Foundation, KCNext, and the University of Kansas Medical Center to help develop the gigabit applications of the future.”

“Over the past decade, the jump from dial-up to broadband has led to streaming online video, digital music sales, videoconferencing over the Web, and countless other innovations that have transformed communication and commerce,” a post on the official Google blog explained. “We can’t wait to see what new products and services will emerge as Kansas City moves from traditional broadband to ultra high-speed fiber optic connections.”

This may come as a disappointment for the city of Topeka that tried so hard last year for this opportunity.  Being one hour east however, it may take no time at all before Google expands their fiber projects to the capital city as the world of technology is constantly expanding.