Tree Down On Your Block? Pothole On Your Street? Street Light Out? Just Click Here

Rohnert Park is in the beginning stages of a formidable plan to launch an interactive website where residents will be able to log any government complaint or request a service from home — a move that suggests more engagement with residents.

City Manager Gabe Gonzalez said from day one that he wants to speed up the slow-moving wheels of government and to be more accessible to the public. He spearheaded a in June and City Hall will reopen Fridays.

"It’s about making the effort to communicate with all ages, to let people know what we’re planning and to basically keep the community informed,” in January.

The new program, called the Citizen Relationship Management system, is underway. Officials said when it's fully implemented in September, it'll save the city thousands of dollars a year. Here's how:

• At least one person, who takes complaints and citizen calls from the Department of Public Works will not be filled.
• The technology will allow staff to interact with other departments on the streets remotely, saving hundreds of man hours per year.
• Less administrative costs; all citizen calls are taken in through the Department of Public Safety instead of different departments. The phone lines will be open 24 hours a day.

The idea is to create a database accessible from the city's website, where if a citizen wants to report a tree down in the street, for example, or graffiti at a local park, or a huge pothole somewhere, they can either call it in to Public Safety or log in from home and report the problem.

"The idea is to be more accessible," said David Rowley, the city's tech guy. 

"In the past requests have been lost, and departments struggled to follow up with each other; so much time and money was wasted," Rowley added. "And residents were often lost in a bureaucratic nightmare if they had a complaint or a request."

Rohnert Park Patch got a look at the new database Tuesday. It's not fully launched on the city's website yet, but departments are using it to log and track requests already. 

One complaint showed that a citizen called in a streetlight out on Eunice Street. Another reported a dead raccoon in the bike lane at Camino Colegio and East Cotati Avenue. A third reported that the concession stand at a pool was burglarized.

"This new site doesn't replace the personal phone call, or a person walking in to City Hall, or a written request, it enhances it so we can track it and follow up," he added.

As part of the new program, Rowley said between 10 and 12 Department of Public Works employees will receive city-issued smart phones.

"It costs time and money to be all the way out in the field, and come back in to get a call, then go back out," Rowley said. "With one click on a new city app, information gathered feeds directly to the employee's phone and they can take care of it right away."