Norwich wants your input on city projects, but is this little-used tool worth the price?

NORWICH — Norwich has been trying a new way to gather public input over the past two months. Is the Envision Norwich 360 website succeeding?

The online community engagement tool, launched in October, now has about 130 registered users. However, many feel that there should be more people using the website, as it will cost the city $20,000 a year to maintain, paid to software developer CitizenLab.

Mohegan Park Improvement and Development Advisory Committee member Beryl Fishbone said the website is a start for residents talking to officials more, but the site needs more users, as 130 is “barely a percentage point” in a city with 40,014 residents.

“Anything is better than nothing, but they can do a lot better,” she said.

What is Envision Norwich 360?

The idea for a community engagement tool came from both the Norwich Community Development Corporation and the Department of Planning and Neighborhood Services. Both these entities needed a way to channel feedback from Norwich residents in a space that was readily accessible and could mimic social media without its hang-ups.

“People can go to social media, but it can sometimes become an echo chamber where people are angry and yelling about the same thing,” Norwich Community Development Corporation President and Executive Director Kevin Brown said. “This is intended so these comments, these ideas, can come together in a more framed fashion and puts it in front of decision makers and planners for the city.”

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The site itself features a running tally of how many users registered for the site, and has sections, known as tiles, where users can interact with the topics. Some interactions include commenting, planning hypothetical budgets, and pinpointing spots on a map of the city and saying what should happen there. Administrators have their names in red, drawing attention to their replies to residents.

The site also has an FAQ and a translation tab in the bottom right corner.

From a site user’s perspective, it mimics social media and breaks down the page into topics, Fishbone said.

Who in city government checks in on resident feedback?

The only officials in an administrative capacity over the tool right now are Brown, Norwich Community Development Corporation Community Manager Mary Riley, Norwich Director of Planning Deanna Rhodes, and Assistant Planner Dan Daniska.

As the site grows and more projects are added, more officials will be added to the administrative team, Riley said.

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“This is a powerful piece of software that can create real relationships between municipal organizations and the public,” she said.

Members of the city council and other politicians are also encouraged to visit the site and see the community’s opinions, Riley said.

Here's what the city is doing with your Envision Norwich 360 comments

Though city officials are encouraged to look at the whole site and all resident comments, they're focusing the most on comments for three projects where public input is a state-required step.

Those projects are the Yale Urban Design study looking at lower Broadway, a revision of the city’s Plan of Conservation and Development, and a looser third category - finding ways to secure grants from the state’s $875 million Community Investment Fund 2030.

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The Investment Fund is meant for small businesses in underserved communities, and for capital improvement projects, including brownfield remediation, infrastructure and affordable housing, according to the state website.

While the first round of the Community Investment Fund is almost done, there will be future rounds of funding for the next few years, and having community input will still be vital, Brown said.

With all these projects, having the engagement tool makes proving public input as easy as pointing to a link, Brown said.

“We did great to get that many folks that quickly, but I appreciate any championing of this site,” Brown said, admitting that the site needs more users.

The site is also eliciting comments for improvements around The Marina at American Wharf and the city’s waterfront.

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How can Norwich encourage more feedback?

The city should make the link to the Envision 360 site more obvious, Fishbone said. Right now, there is only a "06360" logo on the municipal homepage - Norwich's zipcode that is part of the Envision Norwich 360 logo, but not the name itself - that might not be clear is clickable, she said.

Cynthia Jean-Mary, vice president of the Greeneville Neighborhood Committee, said Envision Norwich 360 can be good, as it helps people “dream up the city that you want to see.”

For example, she said, someone may see an abandoned building in their neighborhood that children hang around, and think it could be a good spot for a playscape, and tell people about it on the Envision site.

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Despite the learning curve, more people should be on active on the site because of the direct feedback to officials, which means people’s voices matter, Jean-Mary said.

Norwich Mayor Peter Nystrom isn’t necessarily disappointed about having only about 130 users, as there’s a learning curve and people may want a break from technology. However, he hasn’t seen a tangible effect from the site so far.

“I hope they make better use of it going forward,” he said.

How is the city trying to get residents to use the engagement tool?

It may be early to pass a final judgement on the website. The Norwich Community Development Corporation is working on improving participation through further promotion.

One way is by spreading the word. The Norwich Community Development Corporation met with the Greenville Neighborhood Committee recently, so neighborhood residents could learn about Envision, and encourage others to use it.

“It’s making (projects) clear and understandable to the community, step by step, not in a crashing wave of success,” he said. “Piece by piece, we are making the community understand that there’s multiple ways to have their voice heard and that we want to hear their voice."

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Workshops coming to Foundry 66 will help familiarize people with the website, Jean-Mary said.

Other ways the Norwich Community Development Corporation will further promote Envision Norwich 360 includes placing signs with QR codes around the city, and utilizing an intern from Eastern Connecticut State University to promote it on social media, and help improve it.

The city can re-evaluate spending money on the site on a yearly basis, but Nystrom wants the site to be a success, and hopes the user base at least doubles soon.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: CitizenLab Envision Norwich 360 engagement tool two-month check-up