Town Website getting refreshed
View of the Budget Tool by a specific DEPARTMENT. In this example, the Town Commission budget is shown. Further data can be viewed by clicking on the blue hyperlink on the left.
JEANETTE BILLINGS
Staff Writer
jbillings@lbknews.com
The Town of Longboat Key’s Website is about to receive a major interactive face lift.
And while the Town has been trying to cut its budget and maintain fiscal responsibility it is also striving to refine its mission and make sure services are delivered efficiently and effectively to maintain Longboat’s premier standing.
One area of evidence is the Town’s Website, LongboatKey.org, which with efforts by the Internet Technology Department under the leadership of Director Kathi Pletzke is transforming into an informational powerhouse for residents and visitors alike.
Today, one can access the complete Town Budget, Pension Information, Wireless Service Assessment Analysis, FEMA information, Community Vision Plan, key holder contact information and updates, Bayfront Park Recreation Community Center, Longboat Key Weather Forecasts, CodeRed emergency notification system, Longboat Library information and much more.
What’s to come?
View of the Current Town website. Arrow indicates Budget Tool available by clicking on hyperlink.
According to Pletzke, a complete overhaul of site will be launched in November 2012. It will completely redesigning the site, removing many of he current drill down menus and much of the front page hodgepodge. The new Website, according to Pletzke, will be more streamlined.
“If you noticed our current Website has just about everything on the home page which makes it hard for users to find what they need because it’s so busy. The new site will be more ‘intuitive’, easier to navigate and provide additional features such as e-notification services (where residents can ‘sign up’ to receive email alerts when something ‘new’ is published to the Website) as well as different ways to find what you might be looking for…such as a “How Do I….?” menu. The IT department is working with our ‘power users’ in each Town department to develop the site,” said Pletzke.
Pletzke said that in addition to the “How Do I” the Website will have tabs for residents, visitors and town government.
A source of great pride for the Town is the new budget feature, which can currently be seen on the existing Website as well as the new Website.
This tool allows residents to see on any given day where the Town’s budget stands.
“This is total transparency; the Budget tool provides transparency in Town Budget and actual expenditures,” said Pletzke.
View of the Budget Tool showing the graphical representation of overtime for the Town with a complete 3 year history, in addition to the current budget and current actual amount spent.
The report balances increase and decrease with each day, and residents can use graphing tool that will take them to other windows, showing actual expenditures for the past three years and where the Town stands on a specific date.
Another feature of the Budget Tool is that residents can view wages and overtime as well as analysis by specific department with views in both a bar chart and a spline chart.
The Town’s CodeRed tool allows residents to notify Town emergency department that they would like their address monitored, complete with date’s away, expected date of return and resident contact information.
The Town is encouraging all residents to complete the contact information on the data form to allow the Town to update contact information for residents with an option to receive emergency notifications from the Town of Longboat Key to keep residents informed and alerted to emergency situations.
“We will be using this new Town Website as the information portal to provide the citizens and visitors of Longboat Key with useful information while providing transparency in government,” said Pletzke.
To view the Town’s current website, to enroll in CodeRed, check Longboat Key’s weather forecast of view a schedule of the Town’s upcoming meetings, visit LongboatKey.org.
View of the Budget Tool by a specific DEPARTMENT. In this example, the Town Commission budget is shown. Further data can be viewed by clicking on the blue hyperlink on the left.
View of the Budget Tool showing optional graphing capabilities selecting only 3 departments and charting the data using a spline chart (shows trending).
