The city of Austin launched a new website that city leaders hope will make it easier for people to use. The updated site went live Thursday morning.
City officials said users will be able to more easily access information, including links to pay utility bills and citations, adopt a pet and submit 3-1-1 requests.
In total, the city has budgeted $2.52 million to the website overhaul, with $1.48 million for the initial redesign and another $1.04 million for refining updates or addressing issues that arise over the next two years.
Yasmin Wagner with the city’s communication and engagement department said the city has known for a while that an update was needed, but it took time to get the funding and resources in place.
“The look and feel and functionality have become outdated, inconsistencies appear throughout the site, and it’s weakening our brand recognition, usability of the site and user’s trust in the site as well,” Wagner said.
The website’s architects removed about 16,000 pages, taking the total number down to 1,300.
By streamlining the content available and improving the search function, the city said users will be able to more easily find information about city news, council meetings and recycling and trash schedules that were previously hard to find.
Updated ADA accessibility, translation features and city forms are also included on the new site.
Wagner said visitors to the website will be able to provide feedback and inform updates.
Roxanna Meneses, IT manager for Austin’s Technology Services Department, said the new website comes with data analytics to show staff what pages people visit and where issues might be occurring.
City officials said Thursday’s launch has gone smoothly, although staff are still working out kinks.
This is the first major overhaul of the city’s website since 2012, but not the first step in refreshing the city’s image. Last fall, the city unveiled a new $1 million logo and rebrand initiative that was met with community backlash from residents and city leaders who questioned the city’s spending habits as it continues to struggle with budget constraints. Many residents were also critical of the logo.