Web service links cities to residents

By Laurie Phillips
CONTRA COSTA TIMES

PITTSBURG - There's a reason many of us dread contacting government: We doubt anything comes of it.

We get bounced around voice mail, then dumped into the wrong person's box. We send e-mail but get no response -- even after a week. And those handwritten notes we're assured will be placed on the right person's desk? Often, they're as good as gone.

But some government agencies feel your frustration and hope to bring an end to it.

The city of Pittsburg, one of the latest to sign up, expects the public can begin using the $1,000-a-month service by spring. Without knowing whom to talk to, people will be able to submit requests in person, over the phone or through the city's Web site and use a number issued for each request to track its progress as they would a package.

Moving toward a uniform system helps the city keep track of what it's doing and provides good customer service, something companies figured out years ago, assistant city manager Matt Rodriguez said.

"We have to be smarter, we have to be faster, we have to be more responsive," he said. "... We're looking at a system that is very easy, logical and designed for our needs and our citizens' needs."

Rodriguez said the city plans to provide a response -- and a solution -- within seven business days after the request is submitted. The city of San Ramon, which began using the system in 2004, closes 90 percent of its requests within that time.

Sticky notes, stray e-mails and triplicate forms "are just not an efficient way to do business anymore," Rodriguez said. "This technology allows us to be more sophisticated, more responsive, and allows us to meet their needs better."

That means a tree-trimming request submitted in the morning could be completed the same afternoon. Consistent complaints about potholes could lead the city to alter its road repair schedule. And because requests can be submitted anonymously, someone other than you could talk with your neighbor about his barking dog.

One appeal of Government Outreach's system -- which the software company will operate on Pittsburg's behalf -- is that it creates data on how the city is doing, not just on what it hopes to do. Because governments are goal-driven, that's valuable information to have, said Scott Summerfield, Government Outreach's vice president.

I think every city that has put this in recognized that the old way of doing things leads to things falling through the cracks," Summerfield said. This system "allows you to contact the city about virtually anything when it's convenient to you, and that's the expectation now."

That's an appealing idea for Lillian Zoucha of Pittsburg, who considered the idea Monday while waiting to speak with someone about her water bill.

"I think it's a good idea. Why not?" she asked. "Then everybody can keep track of what's going on."