By Zach Friend, County Supervisor 2nd District
There is no question that with the prevalence of mobile platforms for day-to-day life uses for everything from banking to dinner reservations, the expectation of what services should be provided over smartphones and tablets continues to grow. In response, a number of local governments have been building mobile platforms as a new way to interact with, and provide services for, their communities. In fact, mobile access is arguably becoming the most rapidly growing method of interaction with government services.
However, it is still difficult to interact with Santa Cruz County government via mobile devices. As a result, over the last year my office has been working with Information Services and other County departments on ways in which we can improve service delivery through mobile platforms – including the creation of a mobile app and better mobile-friendly web access on the County website. Over this time, Information Services has been working on an underlying mobile platform they have called “Citizen Connect” to help address these issues. Recently, I brought forward a proposal to the Board of Supervisors to expand this mobile platform into a free public app that allows the community to interact with County government in an entirely new way.
This mobile application will allow constituents to interact with their government on their mobile devices including the reporting abandoned vehicles to the Sheriff’s Office, reporting road hazards (such as potholes and culvert issues), applying for Planning Department permits and even County jobs – all from the convenience of your mobile device. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved my proposal and the initial iteration is expected in early summer.
All County departments have been asked to see how they can provide the community greater accessibility to their functions through this mobile app. Over time the app is hoped to be expanded to allow for the payment of property taxes and the application (and tracking) of many County permits, additional Sheriff’s Office information and more. Information Services is diligently working with other County departments on the timeline for the app’s rollout but it is expected that new functionalities will be added throughout the coming year.
Ultimately, the goal of Citizen Connect is to make Santa Cruz County government more accessible. It can often be difficult to come down to the County building during regular hours to obtain services. Many people have to take time off of work or use a lunch break or even find childcare to accommodate the time needed to visit the County building for services. Expansion of a mobile app like this will help provide a new platform for interaction with County services and improved methods of service delivery and hopefully make it more convenient for our community to receive services and report concerns. Once fully released, the app will be designed to work on iPhone and Droid platforms.
As always, I welcome your thoughts. Feel free to call at 454-2200.