Regional News
November 22, 2008 11:24 PM
$1.5 million project will help York residents navigate municipal websites
David Fleischer
Wouldn’t it be nice if your municipality’s website treated you like the local restaurant where you are a regular?
That’s what Markham and York Region hope to do by creating a joint Internet portal.
Regional council approved $1.5 million, split 50-50, for IBM to develop hardware and software to get the proposal on the go.
“This is really transformational,” Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti said.
He compared the difference between a website and a portal to the difference between shopping by catalogue and stepping right up to a store counter.
The idea is to personalize the municipal website and make things easier for residents since the architecture behind the town’s website and the region’s will be the same.
It is designed so other municipalities can come on to the system if they choose.
“It’s a real example of two local levels of government working together to save taxpayers money,” Mr. Scarpitti said.
A staff report notes that many residents don’t know who does what or where to go with concerns, and creating a “no wrong door” approach to service delivery could make things easier for everyone.
“Our website is primarily informational and I think, societally, everyone is looking to (do things) outside of normal business hours. To me it’s an evolution of doing business,” regional treasurer Lloyd Russell said.
The software could recognize you and tailor the site to your interests and can make it easy to hold online public meetings.
‘It’s a real example of two local levels of government working together to save taxpayers money.’
No user fees are planned to recoup costs, but Mr. Scarpitti said permits and planning applications, which incur charges at the clerk’s desk, could have online charges as well.
While Markham and York Region may share enthusiasm for their new endeavour, not everyone is onside.
Vaughan Mayor Linda Jackson, Georgina Mayor Robert Grossi and Whitchurch-Stouffville Mayor Wayne Emmerson voted against approving the plan.
“All due respect to the other municipalities, but I don’t want to know when your libraries open or when I can go to public skating,” he said.
He also pointed out that many residents of more rural areas don’t have high-speed Internet access.
Mr. Scarpitti said everyone’s community has different needs and the system’s unique qualities will be more apparent once people can see it.
Most local municipalities are keeping an eye on the portal to see how things go.
“We want to see what kind of services it will provide the community, and how much it will save,” Newmarket treasurer Bob Dixon said.
A subsequent contract deals with ongoing maintenance services.
Technological limitations meant York Region was looking to upgrade its website anyway.
Costs are expected to be saved through integration, with staff estimating it will cost municipalities between 30 and 60 per cent less than developing their own site.
While IBM suggested the region could save up to $8 million, staff cautioned that rather than reduced costs, reduced time and effort for residents will be the main benefits.
Ongoing operating costs are expected to be between $425,000 and $450,000 in the first five years, climbing as high as $600,000 in the next five.
New web-based portal features are expected to come on line by the end of 2009.