Community Remarks

Use Street View to see in context

Crystal — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 13:58:23 +0000

Street view helps you to transition from map view. Drag the orange avatar to the map, the streets will highlight blue where street view is available. When it loads, you will be able to walk down the street to view the existing conditions and citizen comments from a different perspective.

Is there a reporting tool dashboard with the Community Remarks site?

Crystal — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 13:52:34 +0000

This is a great question and was recently asked.

We have several reporting mechanisms in place. Each serves a different purpose.

I attach Google Analytics to each installation of Community Remarks to track traffic sources, general web traffic, and hits. You can login to Google Analytics at any time to monitor the use of CR in your community.

On the database side of things, I record a timestamp for each entry so we know exactly when comments were made: date and time of day. I export all of the entry information to a spreadsheet for your review upon request. This spreadsheet can be imported into GIS for further use.

Up to the minute reporting occurs once a comment is made. Because we do not require a login to make a comment, we automatically notify you and myself via email at the time a comment is submitted. This email contains all the submitted information including a photo if they uploaded one as well as the capability to view the comment live, login to edit it, respond to the comment, or remove it from the system.

If there are any other types of information you would like to garner on the reporting side of things, then we can customize features for you because the application is flexible.

Community Remarks Goes Mobile

Crystal — Tue, 21 May 2013 21:53:52 +0000

Now when you visit your community’s Community Remarks website on your smartphone, a mobile-friendly version of the application will automatically load in your mobile browser. The app has been utilized on iPad and on laptops during community meetings to capture comments about urban planning issues. Citizens who can not make the meeting can add their comment to the map at their convenience. The mobile version will help planners capture comments from citizens on the go. Mobile version users can quickly respond to issues in their community and tag their comment from their location. They may also enter a street address if the comment does not correspond with their GPS.

“Although less than 5% of citizens currently use their smartphones to visit the Community Remarks application, we anticipate new uses and demand for the mobile version. For instance, now multiple people can have their say at a community meeting from the comfort of their seat. We can collect feedback at a faster rate and make it even easier for valuable perspectives to be shared. Often, we think of something to share when we are out in our community. The mobile version makes it easy to record the comment and tag the location from the place the comment originated. This opens up the app for more uses, particularly around transit and safety issues, “ says Crystal Wilson, President of PlaceVision and developer of the app.

Communities currently using Community Remarks can look for a free upgrade to the mobile version in October. All future releases of the app will include the mobile-friendly version. Check out the demo of the mobile version by visiting http://www.communityremarks.com/Jacksonville on your mobile phone.