Creativity at MuniMod 2021

The year of virtual events still produces connection

by Chris L. Holley II, Florida League of Cities

This year’s annual MuniMod civic-tech competition, held for the sixth time, had a completely different feel. As with most interactions this year, participants were not gathered before a panel of esteemed judges (think ABC’s “Shark Tank”). Instead, almost 30 young men and women representing eight teams from six universities from across Florida piled into a Zoom gathering with dreams of winning the $15,000 grand prize.

The state’s largest competition of its kind, MuniMod challenges its participants to think critically about municipal functions and create cutting-edge technology and service delivery solutions to address common issues. Teams were given videos ranging from “City Government 101” available at the Florida League of Cities YouTube page to presentations from some of the top communicators and innovators in their fields to prepare them for judging. After watching, each team submitted key takeaways and lessons learned.

Steven J. Vancore, president at VancoreJones Communications, preached the important aspects of concise delivery, pivoting and redirecting, all-important techniques during a question-and-answer session. FLC President Tony Ortiz, a City of Orlando commissioner, spoke to the importance of getting involved in your community and “Building Stronger Cities,” a reference to his president’s priority. Matt Broffman, director of innovation with the City of Orlando, shared his team’s work to rethink the way citizens access the information they need from the city.

Teams were able to take advantage of vetting their ideas with practitioners from across the state ranging from Hayden Brock Jester, deputy fire chief for the City of Pensacola; Jim Anderson, city manager for the City of Port St. Joe; James Dean, city manager for the City of Marianna; Mike Schentrup, police captain for the City of Gainesville; and Jeff O’Dell, police chief for the City of Kissimmee, among others.

On the day of the competition, teams were given five minutes to make their product pitch and then allowed another five minutes to field questions from the judges. After the flurry of presentations and direct and challenging questions, judges’ scores were tallied.

First Place Winner: Paris Prince. SPods (Florida Atlantic University). SPods is a golf-ball-sized hybrid pod innovation that allows the user to wash hands without using an external water supply for emergencies and in areas that lack adequate hygienic facilities.

FLC Vice President Phillip E. Walker, commissioner for the City of Lakeland, congratulated all the participants for their hard work and dedication toward dreaming big ideas for cities of all shapes and sizes. In the end, Florida Atlantic University student Paris Prince’s “SPods” project won the $15,000 grand prize. Two recent graduates of Flagler College and the University of Florida, Blake Richardson and Elezar Tonev, respectively, placed second to take home the $5,000 prize for their “EaseAlert” project.

“SPods” is a dissolvable water soap capsule that allows users to wash their hands without using an external water supply. “I’m so grateful for everything I gained from MuniMod,” said Prince. “The connections I made and the feedback I received throughout the competition were the most beneficial part of this experience. This is the footstool I needed to further advance this product.”

Second Place Winners: Blake Richardson (left) and Elezar Tones. EaseAlert (Flagler/ University of Florida). EaseAlert is a tactile pre-alerting system for firefighters designed to combat the leading killer of firefighters: heart attacks. By mitigating the startle response with alerting systems, EaseAlert can reduce stress and improve efficiency for firefighters.

“EaseAlert” is a tactile pre-alerting system for firefighters designed to combat the leading killer of firefighters: heart attacks. MuniMod helped Richardson and Tonev improve their pitch and highlight the benefits of their product to firefighters who protect our cities.

MuniMod encourages young adults to use their talent and education to focus on municipal government challenges making communities safer, cleaner and more efficient. The development of each team’s product and pitch impressed each judge, and with this experience, each team is sure to make our cities stronger.

Chris L. Holley II is manager, research and innovation at the Florida League of Cities.

PANEL OF JUDGES

From top middle (clockwise): Debra Buff, president of the Florida Association of City Clerks and city clerk of Belle Glade; Keith Nowlin, president of the Florida Local Government Information Systems Association and IT manager for the Orange County Comptroller; Mikaela McShane and Delvin VanNorman (middle), Technology Transfer Program team members at NASA; Terrill Hill, president of the Florida League of Mayors and mayor of Palatka; Michael Grebosz, district director of the Florida City and County Management Association and assistant city manager of DeLand.