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City launches 'open data' initiative

By: Staff Writer

Thursday, May. 31, 2012 at 9:47 AM | Comments: 2

BRUCE BUMSTEAD/BRANDON SUN Enlarge Image

Brandon has opened up some of its data to make it easier for citizens to use.

Ask not what the city can do for you, but what you can do for the city?

That just might be part of the philosophy behind the city of Brandon's new open data initiative, which was officially launched this morning.

A few raw data sets have been posted to the site already, and City Hall says that more will be coming soon. But the real benefit might come from how the general public interprets and remixes the raw numbers.

"My hope and desire is that the data we are providing is able to benefit citizens and application developers," said Todd Burton, the city's IT director. "Over time, we hope to work with the application development community to provide data and resources that will benefit everyone. As the open data community across Canada evolves, we plan to help move it forward."

The first few batches of data include full tax and assessment values for every property in the city, as well as cemetery information and GPS coordinates for Brandon's recreation trails.

Burton added that the City plans to provide more types of data, based on availability and what the community would like to see.

Some of the information was already available online, but the new format is easier to download, analyze and re-purpose.

In other cities, open data initiatives have sparked mobile apps that do things like alert people when a bus is coming or map out areas where there are problems, like potholes.

Mayor Shari Decter Hirst said that the city is continually working towards greater levels of transparency and accessibility.

"We want to make access to information open and easy. Our open data initiative is one step in increasing this ability," Decter Hirst said. "The data that we have provided in our catalog is free to use under a flexible agreement. Our hope is the community will use this information and develop their own applications that can benefit citizens. Open government is about being transparent and accessible, and that is what we are continually working towards."

People are encouraged to browse through the city’s open data catalog and other information at brandon.ca/open-gov, where they can download the information for themselves, request new data be added and provide their feedback.

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Posted by:johnsaito

June 1, 2012 at 7:35 AM

I don't know about anyone else but I had enough openess and transparency when the budget was introduced!

Posted by:Deborah Boschman

May 31, 2012 at 1:49 PM

I am SO HAPPY with Mayor Shari and our leadership at City Hall now!

Transparency, openness, engagement, accessibility is what many of us have longed for, asked for, pleaded for, begged for, needed, wanted and now we are finally GETTING this.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE let the lawyers and the powers that be, find that there is NO CONFLICT OF INTEREST with the Strand Theatre because we have a GREAT MAYOR and GREAT LEADERSHIP at City Hall now!

Our city is FINALLY MOVING FORWARD after all of these years.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE don`t take this away from us now.

IF you do, there WILL BE PROTESTS, I can GUARANTEE you that.

Living within Brandon is FINALLY exciting, interesting and anticipatory.

Please do not STOP all of the many VERY GOOD projects, opportunities, plans that have been started/created/proposed under this new leadership.

Mayor Shari and the leadership of Brandon appear to REALLY CARE about this city and ALL of the citizens living within it.

They have given us MUCH to HOPE for in a better future.

They have allowed us to dream BIG DREAMS.

They are visionary, they LISTEN to the citizens of Brandon, they are VERY GOOD for our city.

Please do not STOP all of the MANY positive, GOOD things that have been started/created by this administration.

GO, Mayor Shari and City of Brandon, go!

I am VERY PLEASED with what you are doing and have done thus far!

Keep up the GREAT WORK for Brandon!

Bravo, bravo, bravo indeed.

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