App an efficient way to resolve community issues
Before I was appointed to the Planning Commission in 2015, I would be frustrated at times when traveling around our city by sightings of graffiti, debris, dumped furniture or the occasional jolting from a pothole.
In the case of graffiti, debris and dumped furniture, I directed my frustration at the folks who choose to litter or deface someone’s property. In the case of potholes, I was frustrated with the lack of funding available to maintain and repair our roads and my lack of time available to report potholes and see to it they were repaired.
In 2017, I became aware of an online service and smartphone app that allows anyone to report issues to city staff so they can be addressed. Concord Connect is available on the city’s website at cityofconcord.org/199/Concord-Connect. You can also install the App on your iOS or Android smartphone.
I submitted my first request via Concord Connect on Jan. 10, 2017, for a large pothole on Treat Boulevard. The pothole was repaired just two days later. I was impressed with how quick and easy it was to report my issue and even more impressed with how quickly city staff resolved my issue. I have since felt empowered, with very little effort on my part, to flag issues for our community and track them to resolution.
It’s a useful tool, and city staff does a fantastic job addressing each issue submitted in a timely fashion. Just in the past month, 196 issues were reported – with 150 addressed and resolved. The remaining items were submitted less than a week ago and will be resolved shortly.
Concord Connect can be used at your convenience to report many issues you observe in our community, including, but not limited to, graffiti, potholes, housing code violations, abandoned vehicles on private or public property, tall grass and weeds on private property, trash, junk or debris on public or private property, illegal dumping on public streets, street light outages and water leaks or waste.
If you haven’t yet utilized Concord Connect, I’d encourage you to do so.
Jason Laub is Chief Operating Officer at RAD Urban and is a City of Concord Planning Commissioner. Email questions or comments to jlaub.concordplanning@gmail.com