City of Columbia uses SpeakUpComo.com to help with August’s tax ballot

On May 1, the City of Columbia launched SpeakUpComo.com as a way to expand citizens’ engagement with city government.
The site is run through SpeakUp, a national platform through Grancius, Inc., based in San Francisco. Users can create an account through Facebook or an email account and start idea threads based on changes they would like to see happen in their community. SpeakUp began as a way to help government agencies across the nation and Canada receive measurable feedback from community members. This service is currently being used by more than 1,000 local, state and federal government agencies in the U.S. and Canada.

The site’s first task was creating a project list for this August’s capital improvement sales tax ballot. This idea forum was open for two weeks after the site’s opening, and includes ideas such as bringing a police precinct to the northeast part of town, renovating the Grissum Building and replacing the Columbia Fire Department’s fire trucks. There are 21 ideas total in the project list.

Company management fellow Lelande Rehard said that the site will continue to be used for whatever projects are needed in the city.

“Cities have used [this type of site] in a variety of ways,” Rehard said. “We’re kind of waiting to see how people are using it.”

By using this site, the city is hoping not to “replace traditional in-person public engagement,” but “enhance it by creating new opportunities for involvement and by making public discussions more accessible and convenient,” according to a press release.

“Our form of local government works best when more folks can provide meaningful feedback and easily share their ideas, not only with staff and Council, but also with other participating citizens,” said City Manager Mike Matthes in a press release.

“SpeakUpCoMo is another tool for us to make decision-making more accessible to all Columbians.”