City's Website is Amateurish.

Our city website has an amateurish look and feel. It provides a lot of information but it’s not well designed. It is like a poorly written textbook and it doesn’t serve as an adaptable tool to interact with citizens. We should be able to pay bills, fines, overdue library fees, renew books, print major reports and studies, such as the coming impact fee study, and submit suggestions and input on issues. We should be able to report a crime, request a street be reviewed for repair, or search an online code of ordinances. Instead, some links are visually cluttered, some are lacking information, and some functions, such as the search engine, don’t work.

Think about how professional and beautiful a website for a historic and interesting city such as Brownsville could be. Take a look at the city websites for McAllen and Corpus Christi. It’s frustrating to think that the best we can hope for in Brownsville is always following in the footsteps of other valley cities. I think not only can we match them but our website can exceed them. A well designed, comprehensive website can also serve as a tool to teach civics to high school students. There could be a more detailed but clear explanation of how our local government works and then they can explore the rest of the website to learn about the specifics of each department. Maybe the Center for Civic Engagement can get together with social studies teachers and develop lesson plans that utilize the website. For example, students can read the descriptions and responsibilities of the boards and write about which board they would like to serve on and why. They could come up with an idea for a business and then have to find out which departments they will have to deal with. I’m sure others can come up with more interesting ideas for activities, but you get the point. However, judging from the limited number of Brownsville related sites and the poor quality and lack of upkeep of the ones that do exist, it’s clear that most elected leaders and local business people still see the internet as an add-on. Well, for those cities that are thriving, internet-based services and communities are no longer add-ons but integral parts in improving government efficiency, encouraging civic participation, and providing important information to the public. Everyone should check out some of the cities listed at http://www.centerdigitalgov.com/surveys.php?survey=cities and then navigate our own city website.

When promoting Brownsville, our city website may be what makes the first impression on a prospective Winter Texan or a business looking to relocate. The same goes for other websites such as BISD, BND, and the airport. We should invest in a professionally designed website and the training for its maintenance. I know that in a city with so many low-income people and still limited access to the Internet, it may not seem worth it to spend money on this. However, we are growing rapidly and the role of technology is also increasing. Before they start adding more administrative positions, the city should try to improve efficiency through online services. Maybe a new website can be a way to promote the new Imagine project and they can increase awareness by having a contest to design a new city logo to be revealed during the launch of the new website. I hope the new mayor has the vision to not only implement the Imagine project but also to actively improve our image.