Today the Knight Foundation made an award to The Chicago Community Trust to “create apps and other tools to help increase the utility of local government data to benefit community organizations and the broader public.”
The Trust is matching this grant and will provide the combined funds to Smart Chicago so that we can work with the civic tech community in Chicago to deliver on this project.
Here’s a snip from “Rahm’s Latest Accountability Plan: An App That Tracks City Services” on Forbes.com:
Mayor Rahm Emanuel will soon unveil an app Chicago residents can use to request city services—and then track the city’s response—he said this morning in the keynote address at Chicago’s TechWeek 2012 conference.
“We’ve opened up reams of city data for programmers to have at it and come up with the most innovative apps for their fellow residents to use: an app to find a towed car, snow plows, and street closures, an app for 311 calls, including tracking like a fedex shipping order,” he told the gathering of hundreds of digital businesspeople and techies at the Merchandise Mart.
Since 1999, Chicagoans have been able to call 311 to request city services or information. In recent years the service has offered status updates on the web, but Emanuel hopes to implement real-time tracking of citizen requests via a smartphone app as soon as this fall:
“I actually want the ability by by fall, when you call 311 and say you want to get X done—tree trimming, pot holing—you will actually get a tracking number. And so the next time you call it’s not like Groundhog Day at 311. Did they ignore me? Do I start this again? No.
“You may not like where you are in the queue, but you’ll be able to track it. You’ll be able to get information back.”
The Mayor shared this vision of a complete service request view in our recent meeting about the project sponsored by Smart Chicago. More to come!
One of my favorite things here at Smart Chicago Collaborative is working with technology and policy leadership in City government. There is a renewed energy and sense of focus in the Mayor’s Office and the Department of Innovation and Technology, and we help support that in a number of ways.
One way is through our presence at 1871, the digital startup center that is fast becoming a center for civic technology and innovation. Smart Chicago is hosting Brett Goldstein, Acting Commissioner (CIO) and Chief Data Officer, Department of Innovation and Technology, in office hours this Friday, June 15 (one slot left) and Thursday, June 28 (just opened– four spaces available).
Consider meeting with Brett to talk about city technology, city data, big data, and predictive analytics. The world of civic technology is growing, and Chicago is at the center. We need more technologists to work in this field— inside and outside government— to grow the technology industry and make lives better in Chicago.
We have a new opening for a team member here at Smart Chicago. You can view the listing on the job portal of your choice (npo.net or idealist) and/or download a PDF of the listing here.
This is only the third member of our team, so the person who fills this role will have a chance to have a big impact on what we do. Consider applying today!
The Smart Chicago Collaborative has partnered with 1871, the digital startup center located at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago, to accelerate civic innovation. We have two reserved seats at 1871 and we seek to fill them with small companies, civic leaders, and community members who are interested in building software using city, county, and state data to improve lives and build businesses.
I will be working there at 1871 a few days a month. Smart Chicago Advisory Board member and City of Chicago Chief Technology Officer John Tolva will also spend some time at the center under the Smart Chicago banner, along with City of Chicago Chief Data Officer Brett Goldstein. We will also bring in staff and leadership from the City and our two other founding organizations, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Chicago Community Trust. Another important component of our work at 1871 will be bringing in community members from all over Chicago to hear directly from them. Our goal is to stimulate the creation of technology that serves the needs of communities while building new businesses on civic data.
We are seeking a limited number of developers, designers, and other makers who would benefit from a few days a month in this unique environment. If you’re interested, complete the form below to initiate the process. We’ve been founding tenants at 1871 and we are happy to offer it as a resource.
The Smart Chicago Collaborative and the University of Chicago’s Urban Education Lab are seeking letters of interest for the design and development of an early childhood education web portal for the City of Chicago.
In order to increase transparency and empower parents, the City of Chicago is partnering with the Smart Chicago Collaborative and the University of Chicago’s Urban Education Lab (UEL) to develop a comprehensive early childhood education web portal. The portal will serve as a one-stop-shop for finding early learning programs, assessing program quality, and tracking data about Chicago’s early childhood systems. With the implementation of the State’s Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS), parents will be able to view each program’s star rating to assess quality across the city. The portal will also help parents understand their child’s eligibility for program, and allow for user interaction/input regarding programs. The portal will be fully operational by the end of July 2012, in time for parents to use it as a resource for the next school year.
This request for letters of interest is the first step in the process of finding a vendor, consultant, or group of consultants for the design and development of the web portal. We are looking for letters of interest that demonstrate an aptitude for and experience in this type of work, as well as some initial thoughts on how to execute it. We welcome letters from design firms, technology outfits, and independent developers who have ideas on how to get this done. The Web Portal Design partner for this project will be required to:
In the letter of interest, applicants should demonstrate experience, aptitude, and capacity in relation to the work described above. In addition, applicants should provide an estimated project timeline and a budget proposal. Letters of interest should not exceed three single-spaced pages, including budget and timeline information, and should be submitted to Dan O’Neil at . Brief bios, CVs, or resumes for key personnel should be submitted with letters of interest and will not be included within the three page limit. Letters are due April 13, 2012.
