Town officials ready to step out go online
Published on January 15th, 2003
STONEHAM, MA - Within the next two years, town officials plan to create a website that could drastically alter the nature of town government.
The website, planned to be uploaded sometime this April, will include functions that allow residents to pay property taxes and parking fines online, access and submit applications for permits, and also look up town meetings on an electronic calendar.
"Think about how easy it is to just go online late at night and pull up a statistic or application you need. It’s literally a 24-hour electronic town hall…that will take the mystery out of town government," said Michael A. Gallerani of Stoneham’s office of community development.
Not only will the website allow businesses and residents access to the town’s government around the clock, it will also enable town officials to focus more on their more difficult responsibilities, say those involved with the project.
"What it does is free us up from having to give out basic information over the phone and allows us to work on the more complex issues," boasted Gallerani.
According to Gallerani, the website will be broken down into eight tiers that focus on education, public safety, culture, preservation, governance, open space, development, and infrastructure. The website will also include an interactive educational page for children and navigation tools for those still alien to the Internet.
Planned to be completed in three separate phases over the next two years, the initial April website will feature only the most basic information and an electronic calendar listing the times and agendas for town meetings.
The plan to launch the website does not mark the first time the town attempted to create an "electronic town hall." Nearly five-and-a-half years ago, Stoneham established its first town website, an ill fated project that failed after it became outdated.
"I think it was up for two years before we pulled the plug," recalled Brian Clapp, director of Stoneham’s management and geographic information systems. "At that point, it was outdated and there was no plan to deal with how to update the webpage," he added.
Yet while the last online project ended in disaster, Clapp asserts that this project will include in-depth planning for the site’s regular maintenance and upkeep.
"The department heads have been very supportive this far and we’ve been talking about what kind of time frame things need to be updated by. There is going to be a plan for its maintenance in each department," assured Clapp, who will work behind the scenes to ensure the website works properly.
While Clapp will oversee the technical aspects and requirements of the webpage, Gallerani has been charged with the duty of creating a "brand image" that will grab the attention of Stoneham’s potential business and property investors.
"Our goal is to have a website that other communities look to and say ‘wow, that’s great," said Gallerani, who has looked at the official webpages of Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Cambridge for design ideas. "We’re also creating a very strong corporate image with this website because it will generate great first impressions."
To help with creating a business-friendly image, the town of Stoneham has hired Pierce-Coté Advertising out of Cape Cod, a firm which recently won a national award for its layout of a resort website, says Gallerani.
Thus far, Stoneham has been appropriated $20,000 for the creation of the website.
In order to find photographs for the website, Stoneham will also enlist the help of residents, holding a contest for the best photos. Sponsored by Stoneham Bank, winners of the contest will receive a $100 cash prize and have their winning snapshots displayed in a town hall exhibit for two weeks.
With so much work to be accomplished over the next two years, both Clapp and Gallerani aren’t underestimating the workload – but they also can’t deny their enthusiasm for such a groundbreaking assignment.
"This is a substantial undertaking. Even with the help of the graphic design firm, it’s huge. We’re going to try to get a handle on the amount of work that needs to be done, so we can populate these webpages," said Clapp. "But these are exactly the projects that make me want to work up and work every morning."
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