Imperial Beach residents and visitors wanting to report issues to the city without having to visit city hall can now reach out via a mobile app.
The MyImperialBeach app recently launched with the goal of ensuring that complaints are properly routed and resolved, as well as tracking where and what kinds of problems commonly arise, said Russell Mercer, the city’s GIS manager.
Its design resembles various features already available on the municipality’s website, including a calendar of local events, access to agendas and livestreams of City Council and commission meetings and contact information for all departments.
The system is intended more for non-emergency communications. To report issues, users can select from multiple categories such as abandoned vehicles, graffiti on private and public properties, illegal dumping and lodging, sewage main problems, sidewalk or traffic signal repairs, street sweeping and brush removal. For animal control-related concerns, the app asks that reports be made to Chula Vista. That’s because Imperial Beach in June approved a contract for animal control services to be provided by its South County neighbor.
People will have to provide their name, an email address and a brief description of the problem. An option to attach photos is also available, as well as a map to pinpoint a more accurate location of the issue being flagged. Users will be able to check for updates on the go with a tracking number.
On the back end of these reports, city staff will rely on a web-based portal to manage incidents by type, priority level and location.
Councilmember Jack Fisher said that staff might feel overwhelmed at first “once this takes off … but I think that the positive part of it is that, you know, these issues won’t go unnoticed.”
The software, Enterprise Service Requests, and the app were developed by Tyler Technologies, which is also behind the city’s planning and permitting services system. In January 2022, the City Council approved using $3,500 from the general fund for the company to develop the app.
MyImperialBeach works on Apple or Android devices.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
