New Website Opens City

Manchester renovates website space for better utility

Manchester Websites have certainly evolved over the past 30 years. One remembers the lo-fi look of the early web with its HTML-heavy look and the only thing that moved was a baby that danced. Today, you have to stay agile, and keep up with the times like the Town of Manchester who recently debuted a new website.

Designed in collaboration with OpenCities, the goal of the new website was to make accessing the tools on their website simple and easy for everyone.

Simple logos make it visually engaging but easy to parse – a garbage can stands in for residential collection, a credit card for online payments, and a basketball for recreation programs.

In a release from the town’s magazine, Better Manchester, Mayor Jay Moran said “We are so proud to present this newly designed website! From Board meetings to dog licenses, the new website will make it easier for you to stay informed and get things done, “This website aims to be a reliable source for community news, events, information, and more.”

Here’s a list of all the new features that they listed as benefits in the Better Manchester release:

• Translations integration, allows users to find information in the language they are able and most comfortable reading.

• ADA compliance ensures the website is fully accessible to all.

• Thoughtful navigation, improved search capabilities, and clean homepage tasks make it easy for users to find what they need.

• Parks & Facilities locator connects town buildings and spaces with programming, events, and more.

• Form integrations make for easier online registration, payments, sign-ups, and more.

• Flexible CMS (Content Management System) which provides the capabilities to adapt to new technologies, website design, and more.

• And MANY more.

Like so many other facets of our life, a website has become a much more crucial part of our “new normal.” Over the pandemic, residents became accustomed to finding resources online without access to town halls across the state. And the convenience of paying bills online, finding and submitting forms online, and reading up on all the town news was too hard to pass up.

We are well into the era where having a website is an essential function of running a local government. But now is the time to leave the Web 1.0 sites behind, and enter a new era of functionality and responsiveness. With so many partners that towns can join up with, there’s no reason to be living in the past.