Westfield informatics director outlines new fiber ring, cybersecurity and public data plans
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Summary
Christopher Larson, Westfield’s director of informatics, told the Common Council the department is expanding mapping and addressing work, adding drone imagery and building a new fiber ring, while strengthening cybersecurity partnerships and preparing a public transparency portal for next year.
Christopher Larson, director of informatics for the City of Westfield, told the Common Council that his small department supports every other city department and is rolling out several technology upgrades aimed at keeping pace with fast growth.
“We are 1 of those hidden departments in the city of Westfield whose whole goal is to support every other department,” Larson said. He identified staff roles and said most team members have more than a decade of service.
Larson said Westfield’s GIS team handles the city’s addressing and public maps, and that an annual audit of addresses recovers roughly $1 million a year for the city when properties had been assigned to neighboring jurisdictions. He confirmed that, year-to-date, the city had created 362 new apartment addresses and 67 commercial addresses.
Larson described new capabilities: the department is using drone imagery to update maps more frequently in rapidly developing areas such as Simon Moon Park; it provides public-facing dashboards for assets such as fire hydrants and trails; and it is building a new municipal fiber ring to connect city buildings. “We’re building a data highway for all of our communication,” Larson said, adding that the fiber project is “about the same as one roundabout” in cost and will give the city greater control over future connectivity.
On cybersecurity, Larson said the city partners with federal entities including CISA and MS‑ISAC for weekly vulnerability testing and 24/7 monitoring. He said technical controls such as multi-factor authentication block about 97% of password theft attempts. The department also has expanded help-desk support and rolled out mandatory anti-phishing training for employees.
Looking ahead, Larson said the department is migrating systems to Windows 11, preparing a new mobile-friendly 311 service, integrating CivicPlus permitting tools with community development, and working with communications and parks staff on a transparency portal to publish financial and departmental data in more accessible, graphical formats next year.
Larson said one leg of the new fiber ring is complete, running from Station 84 to the City Services Center, and future legs will connect public safety buildings and park assets. “Owning it gives us other opportunities,” he said, including sharing capacity with partners if needed.
Council members thanked Larson for the overview and sought clarity about datasets and slide numbers; Larson acknowledged a chart discrepancy and explained that some counts exclude utilities. The presentation concluded with councilors supporting the department’s initiatives and the work toward more public-facing data.