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City reviews mass-notification service after low public response; staff to research geofencing and app-based options
Summary
City staff reported low citizen response to a survey about the existing mass-notification system and outlined options, including geofencing, segregated alert groups and switching vendors. No procurement decision was made; staff will do further homework and report back.
City staff briefed the council on the city's mass-notification system and sought guidance after a staff survey and public outreach returned few responses.
The city currently uses a vendor called Regroup for mass notifications, a system used for severe-weather alerts, water outages and other public notices. Staff said annual costs run about $4,400 for a base package that includes a total-message allowance; initial-setup fees would apply for some replacement vendors.
Staff reported that their online survey and boosted social posts produced only about 11 responses, prompting questions about whether the service is being used. The staff presentation described features the city lacks in its current setup: geofencing that notifies only phones physically located in an affected area, and subscription-style groups residents can opt into for nonemergency notices.
Emergency-management director Ernie Willis and public-works staff discussed shortcomings and current workarounds. Willis described local "nonemergency" and siren-notification groups created to reduce unnecessary alerts for some residents.
Council members asked about options: using FEMA or weather-service apps for severe-weather alerts, geofencing tied to phone location versus given address, and building topic-based opt-in groups so residents can choose which categories of messages they receive. Staff said some vendors support per-group subscriptions and finer geofencing but that those features may require additional setup or address-level data imports.
No vote was taken. Staff will continue researching vendors and geofencing capabilities, and the council asked staff to return with recommendations and costs. Council members said they want to balance resident privacy concerns (some residents decline to provide addresses) with the city's need to reach affected populations for water outages, weather emergencies and shelter notices.
Ending: Staff will prepare a comparative options list, setup costs and suggested outreach to determine citizen preferences before recommending a replacement or reconfiguration of the current mass-notification service.
