Before he was appointed as city administrator of Oak Grove, Missouri, in April 2004, Long was an information technology employee working for a municipal government software development firm in Texas.
When he joined the city of Oak Grove, one of his immediate priorities was to deploy a fully interactive Web site, one that did more than simply offer a brochure style presentation of the community.
Working on a tight six-week deadline, Oak Grove worked with CivicPlus to launch a new Web site (www.cityofoakgrove.com) with almost entirely new content. Now, citizens and visitors have a 24-hour window into Oak Grove's municipal services, civic events and a library of community resources.
"Looking at the Web trends data, we're finding we've got a lot of visitors reading about our parks, downloading our municipal codes and various other data," Long said. "I am convinced that we've successfully made the jump from a brochure-type Web site to a full-service Web site while concentrating on the citizen's primary interests."
Oak Grove is a postcard of rural small-town America located a short drive from the bustling metropolitan lifestyle of Kansas City. With more than 125 years of history, Oak Grove boasts academically excellent schools, top-notch parks and recreation facilities and active church, social and civic groups which play host to a number of special events all year.
Those special events are featured prominently on the new Web site thanks to a Calendar of Events, some of which are listed on the homepage with a link to a complete Calendar and Current Events page.
But the Oak Grove Web site offers much more than a listing of events. Citizens have immediate access to key city employees through a staff directory of phone numbers (with direct extensions) and e-mail addresses for everyone from the City Administrator to the Building and Zoning Official.
Visitors may search the directory by name to find contact information for the person they need. The Web site also has a business directory of businesses and professional associations that will grow into a valuable database for anyone doing business in Oak Grove.
In the Documents Center, download a copy of a public records request, forms about running for elected office, meeting agendas for the Board of Aldermen or municipal committees, and important municipal rules, such as traffic codes, water and sewer system policies and municipal court procedures.
Visitors may check out job opportunities with the city and get answers to frequently asked questions about paying utility bills, obtaining building permits or registering a pet.
"This Web site is a great way to promote the ideal of public government," Long said. "It provides interactivity with citizens and offers expanded services that were not available before."
Oak Grove residents can expect more from their newly enhanced Web site in the not-too-distant future. "We're looking to expand interactive services to the community, such as utility bill payments, complaint forms, and just general correspondence with the city," Long said.
A thoughtfully designed Quick Links feature allows residents to instantly obtain useful information about a variety of public and private services, from an overview of government administration to tax and voter information, parks and recreation, municipal courts and public safety.
The city's Web site management system is based on Microsoft Word, featuring database-driven Web applications (modules), which allow the city to develop services tailored to the unique needs of its community.
