Nuisance Reporting Via iPhone

A new application for iPhones seeks to make it easier for Boston residents to report minor nuisances like potholes and busted street lights.

1 minute read

July 8, 2009, 7:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg


Residents can snap photos and instantly send them in to the city. Utilizing global positioning systems, residents can simultaneously submit the exact location of the nuisance.

"City officials say the application, dubbed Citizen Connect, is the first of its kind in the nation. It was designed as an extension of the city's 24-hour complaint hotline for the younger set, making the filing of complaints quicker and easier for iPhone users.

'If I'm just walking along the sidewalk and I have a complaint - maybe a storm knocked downed a tree - I could take a photo and send it immediately,' said Christopher Loh, 28, a press assistant in the mayor's office who helped come up with the idea for the program. 'You don't have to bumble around looking for a number to call. It's right there in the palm of your hand.'"

Monday, July 6, 2009 in The Boston Globe

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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