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We live in an increasingly digital age, and we must meet the modern needs of our residents, offering technology that makes paying online possible, and a website that allows you to find documents easily.
Below are my ideas to modernize the Town Clerk's office.
Allow Online Payments for Fees and Taxes
Allow Online Payments for Fees and Taxes
It's 2026. How many of your transactions happen online? Do you pay your credit card online? Store purchases? Daycare or school tuition? So why can't we pay our town taxes and fees online too?
There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to offer the ability to pay fees and taxes online. Most other neighboring towns do this, such as Shandaken and Hurley. I've spoken with these towns' clerks, and they can even recommend services that we could use to do the same. And all of this can be done independently of our town website redesign, as it is a completely separate portal.
Still want to send a check or come into the office? You can! I would continue to offer all of these options.
Digitize Forms and Documents
Digitize Forms and Documents
All forms should be available and easily searchable on our website. To do this we must ensure they are digitized, not just scanned. Furthermore, to make it even easier for residents to fill something out online and send it, I would prioritize making our most used town forms as fillable PDFs, so that people have the option to fill them out on their computers without having to print, and then submit online or email to us.
Furthermore, we need to make sure official town documents are digitized. Right now, our list of permits is kept in a hand-written book, but for that to be useful, these records should be in a searchable database. I am aware of one important project that our town is working on that needs access to these permits, so that our town can apply for a program that will help us seek grants. So making these kinds of records more accessible and searchable will help our town to access important resources!
Digitizing records is no small task, but we can apply for state funding to assist with projects like this. Click here to learn about that.
I am ready to help with this. Read more about how I created a database to manage over a decade of records for a non-profit.
Make the Town Website Work for You
Make the Town Website Work for You
Our website is in transition, and we now have the opportunity to make it work better for everyone. I believe many aspects of the the Town Website should be managed by the Town Clerk. It is the portal through which people come to us for information and services, and the primary way in which records and information can be distributed. The website should be better organized, and most importantly searchable. In my mind, it is the digital version of the Town Clerk's office.
Read more about my experience in website development.
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