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News
Got a question or complaint? City says tweet it
Anaheim launches apps challenge to help residents, visitors connect any time.
By Eric Carpenter, Orange County Register
September 29, 2009
Anaheim, CA, Gone are the days when communicating with a city meant dropping a note in the "How are we doing?" box at City Hall and wondering if you'd get a response.
E-mail? Too many addresses. And a bit passé.
Anaheim has joined the Twitter generation.
Today's technology-driven world demands instant access to city services, and city employees must communicate with residents and visitors online and quickly, says Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle.
This month, Anaheim began an interactive Twitter account, believed to be the first of its kind among local cities – not only to let residents know about events happening around town, but also allowing them to send "tweets" to the city to request that a pothole be fixed or graffiti be removed.
City employees are charged with responding to the question or complaint that same day, if possible. No more than 48 hours.
With the hope of tightening Anaheim's embrace on technology, Pringle on Tuesday announced the launch of a nationwide contest, inviting the public to submit ideas for mobile applications that would instantly connect residents and visitors to city services and to information on attractions such as Disneyland and Angels baseball.
Billing it as the "Great Anaheim Apps Challenge," Pringle invited people – across the country – to submit creative ideas in five categories:
•Water &Power
•Parks &Recreation
•Public safety (police and fire)
•Tourism, sports and entertainment
•and "Anything Anaheim."
"It's often difficult for government to think about next steps … but we want to make sure we are part of cutting-edge technology and have greater engagement with the public," said Pringle, who formed a four-person technology-advisory committee earlier this year. "We want Anaheim to be a model that other cities will adopt."
Possible ideas for the apps contest include:
•An application that shows a sports calendar for all Anaheim sporting events – Angels, Ducks, basketball at the Convention Center or Honda Center.
•An app that would show updated information about where to get the cheapest gas in the city.
•A button on your smart phone that would quickly tell you which city library is carrying a children's book you've been searching for.
"The idea is to really take advantage of the mega-trends of social networking and make the city more available and interactive," said Rick Dutta, a member on the city's technology committee and the owner of a computer software firm.
The idea of better connecting with residents is evolving in Anaheim.
In December 2006, the city launched Anaheim Anytime, an online service where people could seek out how to contact city departments. In July 2007, the city launched a 311 phone service, allowing residents to call in.
Twitter is another way to take city services to the type of technology residents are using most, officials said.
See a pothole but don't know it's the Public Works Dept. that should get the e-mail? Followers of Anaheim311 on www.twitter.com can now send in a message – up to the Twitter limit of 140 characters – and it's automatically routed to the correct department.
As soon as the issue is resolved, the user gets a return message – a "tweet" – in return to let them know the resolution.
The best part about using Twitter, city officials said, is that there's no additional cost to the city because it's free to join – for the city and the user.
Steven Farris, 28, an Anaheim resident, said he's lived in Anaheim for years and is a frequent user of social media, including Twitter. But he's never thought about accessing city services through it.
"That's kind of cool, actually, that they are forward-thinking like that," Farris said. "If I can look something up on my iPhone while I'm on the go, I might be more likely to get involved. I live here, but still a lot I don't know about Anaheim."
The city held a news conference at City Hall on Tuesday to launch its Apps Challenge. Pringle was backed by the fire chief, police spokesman and representatives from the Convention Center, Disneyland and several city departments, among others.
Few media representatives were in attendance, but the city will post a video on YouTube, hoping to build excitement about the contest.
It's open to any U.S. resident age 16 or older. Entries can be submitted through Nov. 30 at www.anaheimapps.org. The top prize in each category is $500. Up to 100 "honorable mentions" in each category will get $10 Starbucks gift cards.
The prize money is being paid through sponsorships, not from the city's budget.
The technology committee will review the apps suggestions and decide later which to implement. No timetable has been set.
Pringle said with the use of Twitter and other apps to come, he envisions an Anaheim where residents and visitors can feel engaged with the city any time of day.
"Whether it's filing a complaint or accessing city services, if they want, they can do it at 2 a.m. in their pajamas," Pringle said.