City of Cleveland Finally Updates Its Archaic Website

The landing page from the city’s new website, years in the making. Credit: City of Cleveland

Cleveland’s government landing page is no longer stuck in the early 2000s, looking like a GeoCities site designed by a vocational student.

On Tuesday, following a lengthy, 18-month build out, City Hall unveiled its new website, one with substantial aesthetic and practical improvements that bring Cleveland’s digital footprint up to speed, even if it is belatedly.

The shiny new site, which cost the city $568,483 thus far, according to the City Record, originated in council legislation in June of 2020. It grew as a campaign cry by Mayor Bibb, part of his general opinion that City Hall needed to be modernized.

“I’m thrilled to share that the city’s website has undergone a major transformation,” Bibb said, labeling the site a “significant milestone.” “This new platform is designed to enhance and streamline the resident experience and revolutionize the way we interact with our city.”

A snapshot of the city’s old landing page, a relic of 2000s-era design. Credit: Internet Archive

With a purportedly improved search engine, and optimized design making it readable on mobile devices, the site brings oft-requested services—like its new 3-1-1 center—to the front and center of the website, instead of buried somewhere in subnavigation hell.

Common requests such as locating waste drop-off centers or applying for construction permits seem more readily at hand browsing the site. (Its utility bill pay page, however, takes a bit of time to navigate. And information regarding recreational center schedules aren’t available.)

Practicality aside, there’s an overhaul sense of pride for Cleveland that reverberates across its pages, from its Attractions list (just Destination Cleveland links) to a freshly-made Cleveland By The Numbers fact sheet, even if some of the new language deployed feels like it was pulled directly from a hotel conference room business seminar.

“Cleveland is a city where entrepreneurial grit actually has a nice ring to it,” the site’s About page reads.

On the upside, the mayor’s email and City Hall’s contact information is clearly labeled and easily found if Clevelanders want to tell them to be more original.

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