Google launched free citywide wireless Internet access for everyone in its hometown of Mountain View, California. The netwrok covers the 12 square miles of the city with service capable of upload and download speeds of about 1 megabit per second. And Google indicated that they could ramp up the service to 8 megabits per second if necessary. Before you think Google is being completely altruistic, keep in mind that it has found that there is generally a spike in traffic in areas where broadband becomes more prevalent.
Access in homes might be irregular depending on distance to a node as well as the materials that the house is built of but an inexpensive repeater should help extend reception in those cases.
Google is also working to roll out free Wi-Fi in San Fransisco (with Earthlink) but it will come with ads (unlike the Mountain View service).