Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Digital Services topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council weighs .gov migration and website providers; staff to use interns for improvements if feasible
Summary
Town staff presented options for moving Bluff’s website to a .gov domain and replacing its WordPress host. Options ranged from retaining GoDaddy/WordPress to using government-focused vendors at higher annual cost; staff proposed using interns to improve content and accessibility before committing to a paid service.
Erin presented options for the town’s website and domain hosting as the town moves toward a .gov domain. Current hosting is WordPress through a provider that cannot host .gov domains; staff outlined three paths: use GoDaddy as a domain host while keeping WordPress, contract with a government-focused vendor (examples: Revize, CivicPlus) that would host and maintain the site, or invest staff/intern time to rework the existing WordPress site.
Erin said Revize quoted a one-time transition fee in the $600–$700 range and about $998 annually for hosting/maintenance; CivicPlus provided a similar transition fee but a higher annual cost (about $3,000 per year). Staff flagged accessibility (ADA) compliance as an ongoing requirement the new solution must meet. Council members noted costs and prior vendor experience (one councilor expressed a strong dislike of CivicPlus based on prior interactions), and several suggested using interns to improve the current WordPress site and reassessing paid vendor needs once the interns have time to enact changes.
Council gave staff direction to proceed with the .gov process and to use interns to address front-end usability and accessibility first; no formal procurement was approved at the meeting.
