Richfield Today
Supports "for a country way of life"                   
On any given day this site receives more than 150 hits
  • Welcome
  • About Us
    • Quote of the Day
  • RT Blog
  • Governments
  • Contact Us
  • Links
  • Events Calendar

"Top Secret" Project in Richfield

6/9/2014

0 Comments

 
RT missed a very informative article on May 24th that should be of interest to all RT readers. The article is noted below.  The "Village Zoning Map Virtualization Project" was discussed at the June 5th Plan Commission meeting. In case you did not attend the PC meeting this article will be interesting.  Also interesting for those who have a Facebook page.
May 24th
Social networks improve connections Richfield officials say residents appreciate quick answers

By JOE VANDELAARSCHOT Daily News

When a citizen has a question for their local government, they want a quick answer. In the past, many times those citizens would have to wait for a phone call to be returned or be frustrated by electronic answering machines that don't allow them to talk to a "real person." With today's technology and social networks, governments can respond faster to constituents' queries.

Richfield officials believe their use of Facebook, other social networks and the village's website enables them to communicate faster and more effectively with the public.

 "I believe we've been setting the bar for sometime with our website innovation, social media integration and written external ommunications to our residents," Interim Village Administrator Jim Healy said.  That includes the use of a "zero cost" electronic newsletter and the village Web page."

Healy said the number of people who have "liked" the village's website and who are "friends" on the village's Facebook page have been increasing.

"We are kind of unique because we make a concerted effort to try to update our web and Facebook pages several times throughout the day,"  Healy said. "When people post a question or seek an answer from us we try to respond back within a very short period."

Healy and Village Administrative Intern KateLynn Schmitt do most of the work updating and answering questions sent over the Internet. "And we don't stop responding many times after the office closes," Schmitt said. "There are times when we will answer questions during the evenings."

The village also uses Facebook and the Richfield webs ite to provide updates to the public about highway construction projects and their impact on traveling through the village.

"The public always seems very appreciative when we post updates and answer their questions quickly," Schmitt said.

Healy said in 2012 he applied for - and the village won — a nationwide contest to have the village website upgraded, which provided a savings of about $50,000.

Starting in 2013, the village began allowing contractors to pay online for electrical permits, plumbing permits and HVAC permits. Healy said this has saved the village's Building Inspection Department a considerable amount of time and effort in processing the 100 or more applications they receive every year for construction.

ther features include emergency alerts, did postings for contractors and a news flash for up-to-the-minute happenings in the village.

Healy said the most popular website feature is "Request Tracker" which allows residents to ask information on planning and zoning, public works (very popular in the winter and summer time), discuss property maintenance issues, or any other similar administrative concern they might have.

"This has been phenomenal in starting dialogues with our residents who might otherwise not contact us as regularly," Healy said. "Residents can also sign up for email alerts via our RSS feeds and we've seen a growing popularity with that as well".

Healy said the village isn't going to stop with the improvements they've recently made.

"In 2014, the village is currently working a 'Top Secret' project with our zoning map to make it essentially a cutting edge infographic for both residents and developers," Healy said. 

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    About

    RT Blog will let you know the latest happenings around Richfield.

    Archives

    February 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    2014 Election
    2015 Election
    2016 Election
    2017 Election
    2018 Election
    2019 Election
    2020 Election
    Business News
    Government Topics
    Just News
    Local Events
    Political Posts

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photos used under Creative Commons from xbouwman, Pink Sherbet Photography, rumimume, VLMPO, roberthuffstutter, andreavallejos, steakpinball