Improving meeting packet preparation and publishing
Assembling meeting packets can be a time intensive job when done manually. The original documents tend to vary in format but then all need to be converted into PDF. Then they have to be combined into a single file, and a table of contents built out in the document. For larger cities, these documents can become particularly unwieldy depending on the number of departments authoring the original documents and the extent of the final editing and approval process. The more items and stakeholders involved each step of the way just adds to the complexity, and tends to put pressure on the last person in the chain, who is responsible for final meeting packet preparation and publishing all while meeting legally mandated deadlines.
Over the last several months we’ve been working with the City of Lakewood to address this complexity to make it as efficient as possible.
The outcome has been a suite of updates to our online public hearing software platform.
Batch uploads & conversion
After all documents have received final approval, they can now simply be uploaded in batches. Our software uploads them all simultaneously, as well as converts any .doc, .docx, or .rtf documents into PDFs. Once uploaded, the title for each document can be edited (these become the table of contents in the final PDF) and the order can be changed. If a late change requires a document to be updated, it’s a snap to replace it with another or add entirely new documents.
PDF merge
Once all documents have been uploaded and converted for the meeting, PDF merge allows you to quickly combine multiple PDF files uploaded for multiple cases into one single PDF document - the full meeting packet, in just one click. The PDF document includes an auto-generated PDF table of contents based on the documents uploaded for each case and their associated documents. It feels a little magical, but the real magic is what happens next.
Seamless integration with video presentations and public comments
While desktop software like Adobe Acrobat can handle similar functionality for PDF conversion and merge, our platform allows documents to be displayed in a number of distinct ways. Users can opt to download the full meeting packet PDF from the homepage, which may be ideal for a decision-maker who needs to review the entire file, or a citizen can visit one of the case pages and view just the case-specific materials. Case pages augment the PDF files with additional functionality and content - from the ability to submit public comments and ask questions of staff or applicants, to viewing staff or applicant presentations.
The time savings here can be enormous, we anticipate up to 10x faster for some cities depending on the volume and complexity of their current preparation and presentation process.
This changes the way decision-makers review public hearing meetings forever: now rich media, citizen feedback, and staff generated materials can all be consumed in a single location.
Meanwhile, we’ve been working on a new visual design that enhances the functionality of case pages to improves the presentation of PDFs within the browser, whether on mobile or desktop.