Sunday, Aug. 2, 2015 | 2 a.m.
How often do you drive down the street and see something that needs attention — a burned-out street light, graffiti along a subdivision wall, a pothole, trash strewn about what appears to be an abandoned home?
You might mutter to yourself that someone at City Hall or at the county should do something about it, but they may not know about it. Would you call City Hall — and brace for getting transferred from one person to another?
North Las Vegas is trying to make it easier to notify City Hall when something needs attention. Henderson and Las Vegas figured out a few years ago how to help residents conquer bureaucracy and get action.
The solution: a smartphone app that’s easy to download and use, and allows you to take a photo of the problem, type a note if you want to elaborate, and press the “submit” button on your screen. Your photo and note will be sent immediately to the right person at City Hall and forwarded to the people who can act on the issue. You don’t even need to say where the problem is, because your phone’s data will include the location, if you configure your settings to allow it.
It has never been easier to get City Hall’s attention.
North Las Vegas even will reward you with $250 if your photograph of a tagger or other lawbreaker leads to the person’s arrest and conviction. (No, we’re not suggesting you become a digital-age vigilante. North Las Vegas already has a voluntary service patrol that cruises the city and whose members are trained in how to photograph possibly illicit activity from a safe distance.)
The app for North Las Vegas — “Contact North Las Vegas” — has been downloaded about 50 times since its May introduction. Greg Blackburn, the city’s community development and compliance director, said the city had received about 100 complaints via the app, most of them dealing with graffiti, litter and notices of doors ajar in vacant structures.
“We’re trying to make it easier for people to report things of concern, and they can do it while remaining anonymous if they choose,” Blackburn said.
Some submissions, however, have been off-target; the problems took place either outside the city limits or dealt with homeowner association regulations versus city code violations.
The “Contact Henderson” app has been around since 2011 and has been used about 1,400 times. It is delightfully pushy in its own way: If someone from City Hall doesn’t respond to the submitter within three days, the issue automatically is forwarded to an administrator.
Las Vegas’ app, “City of Las Vegas Mobile,” may not have the most fetching name, but it is effective nonetheless.
Joe Marcella, the city’s technology boss, said more than 2,500 people have downloaded the app, and he was expecting about 2,600 “customer requests” this year. It’s not uncommon for a person to submit a photo of fresh graffiti and for a city worker to remove it the same day. City Council members use the app’s messages to monitor developments in their wards, while city workers use them to identify trends, such as graffiti encroaching in new areas.
Lest residents of unincorporated Clark County feel left out, an app for them is being developed and may be available by year’s end.
Thank you, local government, for embracing this efficient and effective technology and making it easier for us to get your attention. More residents should download these free apps on their smartphones. It’s the next best thing to living next door to a mayor or county commissioner seeking re-election
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