Santa Maria’s Online Reporting Platform Upgraded With New Features For City Repairs & More
Jarrod Zinn
SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – The city of Santa Maria is streamlining their online community reporting platform called Neighborhood Connect.
The interface is devoted to communicating with locals about non-emergency issues.
First launched in 2023, Neighborhood Connect saw immediate, notable results, and locals who have used the platform have helped the interface improve via their feedback.
Last Friday, a newer version of the app and website was officially released, featuring faster processing times and new categories.
“We’ve added things like better aerial imagery so that people can pinpoint where the problems are,” says Dawn Scott, Geographic Information Systems manager at City of Santa Maria. “And then a lot more categories. So we’ve really doubled the number of categories of issue that people can report about. So all kinds of things like if you’re in a park now and there’s a broken water fountain or something like that.”
Locals can use the system in English or with Spanish translation.
People can report repair issues like potholes or broken sprinklers on city property.
“I think that it provides a better customer service experience and it helps the city staff help the public with addressing any concerns that they have,” says Erin Luton, a City Code Enforcement technician.
There are also links to city code enforcement for issues on private property.
And, there’s a new category — reporting a business selling alcohol or tobacco products to a minor.
“It’s anonymous, if they wish to be,” says Scott.
Users can also include new ideas for the city’s Public Art Master Plan.
“If you have general feedback about a particular issue in the city or maybe an idea or positive feedback, that’s always welcome. But any kind of issue that you’d like to be heard,” says Scott.
Locals who’ve used the platform say there’s a notable difference in response times to reports, and some issues are even handled on a same-day basis.
“The residents also get feedback,” says Scott. “That’s an important thing. They’ll get emails that describe the status of their report and what’s being done about it.”
Reports go directly to the most appropriate department and office, rather than being passed through the entire city administration team.
“I know that it’s been a game changer in a lot of ways,” says Luton. “People see things around the city, they see issues that need to be addressed, but sometimes they don’t know who exactly they need to report it to.”
Since its initial launch two years ago, an estimated 3,000 reports from the community have been processed.
You can even report a problem after hours.
You can check out the platform and even report a problem after hours by clicking this link to visit the site.
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