Boston Environment

1
Applying e-Government Principles to the Boston
Environment Department
Adam Hart Todd Hetrick David LeRay Emily LoPresti

• Boston Environment
• Department

2
e-Government Overview

• 5 Steps of e-Government Implementation
• Simple information dissemination
• Two-way communication
• Service and financial transactions
• Integration and communication between departments
• Political participation
• Boston is ranked 3rd in the nation

3
Project Overview

• Municipal governments lag behind technological
  trends established in the private sector
• Citizens need easy access to city services
• City workers need easy access to data

4
Bostons Environment Department
The City's Environment Department aims to
protect our built and natural environments and
provide information on environmental issues
affecting Boston.

• All processes were paper based
• Information management techniques were at the
  discretion of each commission
• Permit application processing was lengthy and
  cumbersome

5
A Focus on our Project

• Historic District Commissions (HDC)
• 3 Preservation Planners
• 7 Historic Districts
• 800 applications yearly
• Boston Conservation Commission (BCC)
• Jurisdiction over entire city
• High state-level interaction
• 70 applications yearly

6
Project Goal

• Assist in coordinating information management in
  the Boston Environment Department
• Map information flow in the department and the
  city
• Design online permit/approval system
• Design interactive database system
• Create a proposal to implement the designed
  systems

7
Information Flow Design Orientation
8
Outline

• The Municipal Building Permit Process
• Conservation Commission
• Historic District Commissions
• Analysis / Benefits

9
Outline

• The Municipal Building Permit Process
• The Municipal Building Permit Process
• Conservation Commission
• Historic District Commissions
• Analysis / Benefits

10
The Municipal Building Permit Process
11
Outline

• The Municipal Building Permit Process
• Conservation Commission
• Map Information Flow
• Design new Information Flow
• Implement the new Information Flow
• Conclusions / Recommendations
• Historic District Commissions
• Analysis / Benefits

12
Map Information Flow
13
Design new Information Flow
14
Implement the new Information Flow

• MS Access Database Demonstration

15
Conclusions / Recommendations

• Conclusions
• Improved database will increase usefulness of
  organized data
• Recommendations
• Validate information in database
• Continue use for tracking records

16
Outline

• The Municipal Building Permit Process
• Conservation Commission
• Historic Districts Commission
• Map Information Flow
• Design new Information Flow
• Implement the new Information Flow
• Conclusions / Recommendations
• Analysis / Benefits

17
Map Information Flow
18
Design new Information Flow
19
Implement the new Information Flow
20
Implement the new Information Flow

• Applicant Web-Based Interface
• Preservation Planner Interface

21
Conclusions/Recommendations

• Conclusions
• Website will streamline application process
• Database will improve information management
• Recommendations
• Update and improve website-database link
• Use of database becomes standard practice

22
Outline

• The Municipal Building Permit Process
• Conservation Commission
• Historic District Commissions
• Analysis / Benefits

23
Benefits BCC

• Loss of data prevented
• No need to validate information found
• Easier to search through records
• Intuitive approach for personnel
• Easier for citizens to perform research

24
Analysis HDC Old Process
117 total hours
25
Analysis HDC New Process
56 total hours
26
Benefits HDC

• 61 hours of time savings per month
• More time for site inspections
• More time for face-to-face interaction
• Faster return time for citizens
• Better record keeping
• Easier to perform tallies/analysis
• Easier for personnel to search records
• Easier for citizens to search records

27
Acknowledgements

• Boston City Staff
• Colleen Meagher
• Tim Famulare
• Rajesh Pareek
• Bryan Glascock
• Martin Von Wyss
• Brigid Kenny
• Alexa Pinard
• William Young

• WPI
• JP Hanlan
• Fabio Carrera

28

• Questions?