Haines Borough Manager David Sosa said the municipality is considering a $7,000 facelift for its website.
The upgrade would be through the same consultant who redesigned the borough’s website in 2012. The assembly authorized $19,300 for that project, conducted by Oregon-based aHa! Consulting.
At the time, the assembly had to approve the project because it cost more than the manager’s $10,000 spending limit.
“In general, we are always looking for ways to convey information in clearer formats to residents and visitors,” Sosa said. “No one has asked for updates in particular ways, but we do hear comments from people expressing a desire to see more or access more information. These tools can help us do that.”
Options for the upgrade include making the site mobile-friendly, streamlining the staff directory and adding a geo-mapping capability.
Geo-mapping essentially plots points on a street map that can be clicked on to reveal information. For example, public works projects could be geo-mapped, and when a user clicks on a point, he or she could view the project’s status, location, completion date, etc.
Assembly member George Campbell said he doesn’t believe the borough can make the improvements in-house.
“Currently, the borough website sucks,” Campbell said. “Unless you know where to look for stuff and how to find stuff, it’s hard. You have to open four or five different pages to open an agenda.”
The final decision to move forward with the site redesign hasn’t been made, Sosa said.