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Buffalo Grove: There’s no app for that
The screen shot of what the multi-faced Buffalo Grove smartphone application from Constituent Outreach Consultants could look like. | Photo courtesy of Constituent
Updated: January 28, 2013 6:14AM
BUFFALO GROVE — There is an app for nearly everything, so why not one for Buffalo Grove?
During last week’s Village Board meeting, trustees listened to a presentation from Constituent Outreach Consultants, a Chicago-based technology firm that makes smartphone applications that are designed to help residents stay connected to their local public agencies. Customized for the Buffalo Grove community, the proposed application would gather and send news updates from every school and local form of government straight to one’s screen, at the touch of one button.
Andy Todd, Constituent’s chief operating officer, said the product would be free for users. It would operate on the Apple iPhone and the Android and would be designed to not fill up one’s phone with spam or junk.
The vendor is requesting Village Hall pay the $185 maintenance fee.
“There will be no advertising in the app, at any point,” Todd said.
The app would include official releases from Village Hall, Buffalo Grove and Stevenson high schools, Aptakisic-Tripp Elementary District 102, Kildeer-Countryside Elementary District 96, Vernon Township, the Indian Trails and Vernon Area libraries, the Buffalo Grove Park District and the police and fire departments. The app would only send the information those providers choose to release about their events, including built-in maps of locations and one-touch calling when users have questions.
In the case of a winter snowstorm, the app could tell residents which schools or which roads are closed, as soon as officials update their Internet news streams.
The app would work in reverse, too, officials send. There is a comment feature, giving users another avenue to notify officials of an issue.
“If they see a street light that’s out, they can take a picture of the street light with the phone and send it to public works,” Todd explained.
For additional fees, Constituent can offer additional features in the product.
Village Manager Dane Bragg said other offices would pay those fees.
Todd said the plan would be to make the app available by the end of January.
Village President Jeff Braiman said he was excited to see what it can do.
“We look forward to January,” Braiman said.
