Wildfire Internet Launches Wildfire CityPages v26 After Thirty Years of Building Toward This Moment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

# Wildfire Internet Launches Wildfire CityPages v26 After Thirty Years of Building Toward This Moment

## Redesigned hyperlocal platform brings community discussions, real estate, business tools, and a modern digital home to communities on both sides of the St. Louis metropolitan area

**GRANITE CITY, IL — May 2026**

Thirty years after George Sykes and three tech friends launched Wildfire Internet in 1995, the company is releasing Wildfire CityPages v26, a complete reimagining of its hyperlocal digital platform serving communities on both the Illinois and Missouri sides of the St. Louis metropolitan area.

The launch marks the culmination of three decades of building web infrastructure, community tools, and local digital services. Wildfire Internet, one of the longest-running Internet-focused businesses in the St. Louis region, purchased city-specific domains including edwardsville.com, collinsville.com, granitecity.com, and others in the late 1990s with a singular vision: to build the definitive online home for each community it serves. That vision is now fully realized in v26, spanning 61 communities across Illinois and Missouri.

"This is what I imagined CityPages to be and is Wildfire's gift to the St. Louis communities," said George Sykes, President of Wildfire Internet and Managing Broker with Worth Clark Realty.


## Built for This Community, Not for Algorithms

Unlike national platforms that aggregate content from across the country and bury local voices, Wildfire CityPages is built exclusively for the St. Louis metropolitan area on both sides of the river. Every discussion, event, business listing, and real estate property on the platform belongs to this specific geography and the people who live here.

The platform launches with 61 communities across two states. On the Illinois side: Alton, Belleville, Bethalto, Cahokia Heights, Caseyville, Collinsville, Columbia, East Alton, Edwardsville, Fairmont City, Fairview Heights, Glen Carbon, Godfrey, Granite City, Greenville, Highland, Jerseyville, Lebanon, Maryville, Mascoutah, Meppen, O'Fallon, Pontoon Beach, Shiloh, South Roxana, St. Jacob, Swansea, Troy, Waterloo, and Wood River. On the Missouri side: Ballwin, Brentwood, Chesterfield, Clayton, Creve Coeur, Dardenne Prairie, Des Peres, Ellisville, Farmington, Florissant, Glendale, Hazelwood, Imperial, Kirkwood, Ladue, Lake St. Louis, O'Fallon, Old Monroe, Olivette, Richmond Heights, South County, St. Albans, St. Charles, St. Louis, St. Peters, Sunset Hills, Town and Country, Troy, University City, Weldon Spring, and Wentzville.

The v26 redesign introduces a clean, modern visual identity built on the Tailwind CSS framework. The new design is fully responsive, delivering a polished and consistent experience on every device from desktop to mobile, with navigation and layout purpose-built for the way people actually use the web today.


## What Is New in v26

**Community Discussions.** A redesigned discussion platform gives verified local residents a place to connect around topics that matter to their neighborhood. Categories span general community conversation, local events, real estate, business news, and more. A dedicated Business Hub gives verified local businesses their own discussion space. Users can filter discussions by their verified city, by state, or across the entire CityPages network.

**Events.** A dedicated events calendar keeps residents informed about what is happening across the communities, fully integrated with the discussion platform so every event can become a conversation.

**Business Hub.** Local businesses can establish a verified presence on CityPages, connecting with the community through discussions, events listings, and dedicated business profiles. The Business Hub is designed to give locally owned businesses the kind of visibility and engagement that national platforms simply cannot offer at the neighborhood level.

**Real Estate.** The platform's real estate section is powered by live MLS data, giving buyers and sellers current listing information across the metro. The section includes a comprehensive Help and Support module covering every step of the buying and selling process, a home valuation tool through Homebot integration, and details on an exclusive flat-fee listing service at $5,495. That flat fee represents a significant saving over traditional commission structures and is available to Illinois sellers through George Sykes, Managing Broker with Worth Clark Realty.

**Help and Support.** A fully redesigned help center covers CityPages features, real estate guidance for buyers and sellers, and the history and services of Wildfire Internet itself. The help module is organized by topic with a collapsing navigation system that makes it easy to find answers without getting lost.

**User Accounts and Verification.** Residents create accounts and verify their location, ensuring the people contributing to each community's conversations are actual members of that community. Verified Business accounts receive enhanced visibility and dedicated tools for engaging with local customers.

**Banner Advertising.** Local businesses can reach residents across the CityPages network through a banner advertising program with state-level targeting, desktop and mobile creative, and transparent view tracking.


## Thirty Years of Local Infrastructure

Wildfire Internet was founded in 1995 when the public Internet was still in its earliest days. George Sykes, who holds a BS in Computer Science and a Master's in Mathematics and Computer Science from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, had spent years as a National Systems Application Engineer for Silicon Graphics, working with clients including NASA, the U.S. Navy, Fermi Labs, DuPont, GM, and McDonnell Douglas. He returned to the St. Louis region with a conviction that local communities deserved their own digital infrastructure, independent of platforms built for national audiences.

The company built custom web solutions, e-commerce platforms, and content management systems for hundreds of clients over three decades. The early decision to secure hyperlocal domains including edwardsville.com, collinsville.com, granitecity.com, and additional city-specific addresses gave Wildfire the foundation for what would eventually become the CityPages network.

Version 26 is that foundation fully built out: a platform sophisticated enough to serve the needs of residents, businesses, and real estate professionals across 61 communities, built entirely around the character and geography of the St. Louis metropolitan area on both sides of the river.


## Availability

Wildfire CityPages v26 is available now across the platform's full city network, including edwardsville.com, collinsville.com, granitecity.com, maryville.com, and city-specific sites for all 61 communities throughout the Illinois and Missouri sides of the St. Louis metropolitan area. Residents can create a free account, verify their community, and begin participating immediately. Local businesses interested in verified Business Hub placement or banner advertising can contact Wildfire Internet directly.


## About Wildfire Internet

Wildfire Internet is a privately owned software development and technology company founded in 1995. The company develops and operates the Wildfire CityPages network along with custom software solutions for clients across the region. Wildfire Internet is based in the St. Louis metropolitan area and has been building for the web since the web was new.

wildfire.net


## About George Sykes

George Sykes is President of Wildfire Internet and Managing Broker with Worth Clark Realty, serving buyers and sellers on the Illinois side of the St. Louis metropolitan area through a full-service flat-fee listing model.

618-531-4000
george@wildfire.net


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**Media Contact**
George Sykes
Wildfire Internet
618-452-2400
sykes@wildfire.net

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