Tools for Better Community Planning

As planners, we know the importance of engaging the community in the planning process. Effective engagement allows community members to voice their views and contribute to policy decisions that affect their communities. With COVID, the trend for using online tools for improving and enhancing community engagement has spread. Online public engagement and social media data mining are tools that can improve our ability to get community feedback on projects and ensure that community members’ concerns and interests are heard.

Various companies provide online public engagement tools that can be used to disseminate information, share surveys, encourage interactive map participation, and provide discussion opportunities on specific topics. Other companies can provide access to data mining of social media specific to a project or community. These tools can mine data points from various social media entities to determine what the community is talking about and where their concerns are focused. These two types of tools can provide a broader picture to planners, especially in areas where there is little public participation.

Companies that provide these services include:

• Bang the Table
• ZenCity
• Citizen Lab
• OpenGov

While traditional outreach should still be included, online tools can widen the reach and provide a better understanding of a community’s needs and wants.