Vice Mayor Dingle pitches 'Citizen Portal' app; council to study costs and procurement

Vice Mayor Taylor Dingle on June 9 urged the City to study a proposed "Citizen Portal" that would allow residents to submit complaints, compliments and service requests, attach images and receive tracking numbers to follow progress.

Dingle described the portal as a way to "equip staff with a tool" to improve public communication and said he did not mean "replacing people with AI, but to equip staff with a tool that if utilized correctly it could become a real weapon." The demonstration, provided by ACT Computers and SilverLogic, outlined a three-part system to classify submissions, route tickets to departments and notify residents of status changes by email.

Mark Jones of SilverLogic explained that the system would provide tracking numbers so residents could monitor a ticket’s progress, allow staff to route issues by category and location, and enable reviewers to attach images and set priorities. Councilmembers raised questions about anonymous submissions (Mrs. Moore noted some code-enforcement complaints require contact information by state law), public-record implications, staffing to manage the portal, and whether the city would need a formal procurement process.

City Manager Monte Falls recommended the vice mayor meet with staff, the vendor and appropriate department heads to scope costs and staffing; Falls said a Request for Bid would likely be required if the city pursues procurement. Mayor Cotugno suggested consideration during upcoming budget discussions. Dingle thanked the presenters and said he believes the tool could be the future for local governments.

The council did not take formal action at the meeting; staff will return with cost estimates and procurement recommendations.