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Decatur rolls out platform to document graffiti, potholes

Decatur

Decatur rolls out platform to document graffiti, potholes

The historic Decatur GA courthouse
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The historic Decatur GA courthouse

The historic Decatur GA courthouse

The city of Decatur is using a new program so residents and business owners can report problems or request services online or using smartphones.

The MyDecaturGA reporting platform uses SeeClickFix.com to allow “residents to document neighborhood concerns and improvements alike, ranging from graffiti and code violations to damaged sidewalks and potholes. It also features useful information such as lists of restaurants and city parks as well as links to the city’s blog, Facebook page and Twitter account,” according to the city’s blog, The Decatur Minute.

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“MyDecaturGa replaces the city’s previous reporting system, GovPartner,” City Manager Peggy Merriss is quoted as saying. “The SeeClickFix interface is more robust and allows users to report concerns not only online but using the mobile app. This makes it much easier to include a photo and exact location when reporting an issue.”

The city says you can go to SeeClickFix.com to create a login to report an issue, or download the app MyDecaturGA. The city says the issues that can be reported are:

  • Animal complaints
  • Car seat safety check request
  • Cemetery issues
  • City Facilities Maintenance issues
  • City trees and park maintenance request
  • Code violations
  • Feedback on staff or service
  • Fire Inspection Request
  • Graffiti
  • Missed sanitation collection
  • Out of Town house check request
  • Parking issues
  • Potholes and Sidewalks

Here is the full press release from the city:

Decatur, Ga. – Today the City of Decatur announced a new tool, MyDecaturGa, that allows residents, visitors and business owners to report quality-of-life issues and request services online or with their smartphones. Powered by SeeClickFix, the place-based reporting platform allows residents to document neighborhood concerns and improvements alike, ranging from graffiti and code violations to damaged sidewalks and potholes. It also features useful information such as lists of restaurants and city parks as well as links to the city’s blog, Facebook page and Twitter account.

“MyDecaturGa replaces the city’s previous reporting system, GovPartner ,” said City Manager Peggy Merriss. “The SeeClickFix interface is more robust and allows users to report concerns not only online but using the mobile app. This makes it much easier to include a photo and exact location when reporting an issue.”

Anyone can go to SeeClickFix.com to create a login and report an issue or download the free app from the Apple or Google Play stores by searching for “MyDecaturGa.” When submitting issues via mobile app, users can provide locational, descriptive, and photographic information as they see the issue in real time. Users can even create their own “watch areas” to receive notifications about all issues reported in their community, enabling them to follow the progress of all service requests, not just the ones they report. Additionally, people can view, comment on and vote to fix problems submitted by other users.

Once someone submits an issue, City of Decatur staffand anyone ‘watching’ the area will receive an alert. Then, a City of Decatur employee will acknowledge the service request, and update the request once it’s been resolved. Everyone watching an issue will be able to see each step of the process as it happens.

Currently, the list of reports that can be made are: Animal complaints, Car seat safety check request, Cemetery issues, City Facilities Maintenance  issues, City trees and park maintenance request, Code violations, Feedback on staff or service, Fire Inspection Request, Graffiti, Missed sanitation collection, Out of Town house check request, Parking issues, Potholes and Sidewalks.

Launched in 2008, SeeClickFix allows citizens anywhere in the world to report and monitor non-emergency community issues. Through web and mobile applications as well as embeddable widgets, SeeClickFix empowers citizens, community groups, media organizations, and governments to work together to improve neighborhoods. It is the most widely distributed citizen-reporting tool in the country, having recently surpassed 1 million issues. SeeClickFix supports the Open311 standard that promotes improved communication between local municipalities and the citizens they serve.

“We are happy to welcome the City of Decatur to the SeeClickFix family,” said SeeClickFix CEO and co-founder Ben Berkowitz. “We look forward to an engaging partnership with the Decatur community.”

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Dena Mellick

Dena Mellick is the Associate Editor of Decaturish.com.

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