By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The city of Great Bend hired Addison Crites to assist with the city's ability to communicate with citizens. Tuesday night, the public relations director addressed the city council for the first time to seek funds and approval for switching the city's website to a new provider. The body voted 7-0 to approve the move from Civic Plus to Revize, a firm that has helped create more than 3,600 government-related websites in its 26 years of business.
"I had an individual meeting, along with a staff webinar with an account manager from Revise a few weeks ago, to make sure our concerns and questions were made known before we seriously considered the decision," Crites said. "The largest benefit of making the change is the amount we will save annually, while still retaining the same day-to-day features we currently use."
The initial start-up cost of moving to the Revize platform is $20,060, with an annual fee of $7,990, which is half the amount the city currently pays to Civic Plus. Crites has also talked with city officials in Gardner and Winfield, which also utilize the Revize platform, and both cities have been pleased with the user-friendliness and customer service.
"Some other benefits of switching over include a fresh, new look to our web, as well as being more user-friendly, which has been a recurring complaint about our website from both city employees and citizens," Crites said.
The city's current contract with Civic Plus ends May 31, 2026. Crites said the transition to Revize should take 24-30 weeks, and the city will maintain its current web address. City Administrator Logan Burns told the council that Civic Plus has increased its rates each year. Crites said the city of Winfield has used the Revize platform for eight years without price increases.
The city also approved an add-on feature for American Disabilities Act compliance. An April 2024 ruling by the Department of Justice requires all city web content must be made available for citizens with disabilities. Cities with fewer than 50,000 residents must be compliant by April 26, 2027.
Councilmembers asked several questions about the switch. Crites said the Revize platform will feature most of the options currently offered by Civic Plus, including the ability to post council meetings and agendas and city ordinances. Revize offers a transfer feature for other items the city may wish to keep. Civic Plus currently offers a Request Tracker for citizen complaints. Crites said it may look a little different, but Revize offers a similar feature.