The universe of local government sites is so large that I doubt that most evaluations of local sites even look at more than one percent of what’s out there. Because I am intimately involved in government in Utah, I examined over 300 local government sites in the state (city and county). What follows is my subjective assessment based on a minimal set of criteria. And overall, I have seen some pretty major improvement in local government sites over the past year or two, not just in design, but the addition of more services, social media, online democracy, and mobile services.
- Ogden City – Ogden has done an excellent job of integrating visual appeal with functionality. The site also has an excellent mix of social media and the city has a nice smartphone app as well.
- A to Zion – The St. George Tourism and Convention Bureau does a superior job with visuals and creates some incredible video content. And look at that! a nice Google+ page along with everything else.
- Lehi City – Lehi’s new website reflects a mix of the old West and new tech companies that are now taking over the city.
- Daggett County – Beautiful website for a county with less than 1,000 people.
- Escalante– I know, this is the Chamber of Commerce website, but that’s about what there is in this small community whose economy is based primarily on tourism. The map background is pretty cool and the site does a good job of enticing potencial travelers.
Honorable Mentions
- Sevier County
- Box Elder County
- Kaysville City
- Washington City
- West Valley City
- Sandy City
- Town of Henefer
- Highland City
- Syracuse City
- Wasatch County
- Cottonwood Heights
- Herriman City
Great list, David. A bunch of my wife’s family actually lives in Lehi. I wonder what they think of their city’s awesome portal. Is the current design relatively new? I’ve got to say though, Utah does always seem to be leading the charge when it comes to bringing the latest technology to citizen services which, as a one time resident of the great state, is pretty neat to see.