Help Put the Finishing Touches on the City's New Website

Yesterday I spent over an hour in the Training Room at City Hall trying out the city's emerging new website. It is going to be hundreds of times better than the present one in many ways. It is nice looking, for one thing - lots of views of the city in the banners on each page - and a gallery of photos - most of which were taken and submitted by Northfielders. You can get to the various city boards and commissions, see their agenda and minutes. You can pay your utility bill. So, for the average citizen, it is as "user friendly" as the present one is "user frustrating." 

The city completely redesigned website will be launched on February 4. It will be a work in progress and once  it is up and running, changes and improvements will be added as needed.  

The Council and Staff invite the public to come to the Training Room on the Second Floor of City Hall (801 Washington Street) during one of the Website Open House times shown below and give the City the benefit of their input and suggestions. A goal of the design is to make the new resource easier for the public to stay informed and engaged in the work of the city. Staff will be available to introduce people to the website, answer questions and hear suggestions.

According to Councilor Suzie Nakasian, "the new website includes a citywide events calendar, an electronic bill pay feature (for utility and other bills), easy (one-click) access to meeting minutes and archival videos, a nifty "search" feature that gets you quick access to information on any City project; email links to your elected representatives and city staff, and a handy Community Comments portal where you can report a specific concern, question or suggestion AND track the City’s response to it." 

Three more open houses remain: 

Thursday, January 24, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Monday, January 28th, 9:00 – 4:00 p.m. Tuesday,

January 29th, 5:00 – 7:00 p.m

Pick a time and take a look! There's an evaluation form you can use to let the committee know what you think.