Highland Falls board greenlights moving toward new CivicPlus website, three‑year pricing discussed

The Village of Highland Falls moved Wednesday to pursue a modern, mobile‑optimized website offered by CivicPlus after hearing competitive quotes and an IT review. Mayor (speaker labeled “Mayor”) told the board the existing site runs on an outdated WordPress setup and is difficult for residents to use.

“It's awful for the public. It's awful for me, and I'm on it daily,” the Mayor said, arguing the CivicPlus package would make notices, utility payments and meeting materials easier to access on mobile devices. The mayor said the three‑year package is being pitched with pricing locked for the first years and that $8,500 budgeted for MTA tax savings would be used to offset initial costs.

Trustees asked whether the current vendor had alternatives and whether the quoted base price would grow once add‑ons are considered. One trustee noted the vendor’s “three‑click” usability guideline as a positive but cautioned additional features may increase total cost; an IT staff member confirmed they had reviewed the proposal. The board did not finalize a signed contract at the meeting but moved to advance CivicPlus toward contract review and to return with final pricing and implementation timing.

Next steps: staff will return to the board with contract language, final cost estimates and schedule for migration; the mayor said the provider estimates the site will be live well before year’s end if implemented.