DCRA Upgrades Website, Offers Handy New PIVS Application
DCRA launched a new website last night, and like other agencies who have transferred to the fresh DC.gov template, it is a tremendous improvement.
DCRA's new site is part of the District of Columbia government's new web template, designed to make agencies' online presence simpler and easier to navigate. DDOT redesigned its website with this template back in February; DCRA is now the fourteenth agency to apply the upgrade. As someone who uses D.C. government websites everyday, it's hard to emphasize just how much better this new layout is. The old D.C. government template involved a big, blocky look with a bunch of tiny hyperlinks. The new template is clean, with lots of space between images and sections, and getting to where you need to go is very easy.
“We’re really excited about the new website and it’s designed to take our customers directly to the information they want faster and easier,” said DCRA Director Linda Argo.
DCRA can certainly utilize the enhanced capabilities of the new template. The agency's featured services -- like its permit database, its online organization search and business licensing -- are now included in one easy-to-navigate frame at the top of the page. Of course, DCRA's subsites -- This Should Be Illegal and RentMyDCBasement.com -- are also prominently featured. There's also an exciting new application called PIVS, which, according to DCRA spokesman Mike Rupert, "essentially allows customers to see pretty much anything they want about a particular property." It's pretty fun -- try plugging in your address and seeing if there's ever been a housing code violation on it, or even what the building was made of and when it was constructed.
DCRA told DCist that the site's layout is based on two years of studying analytic patterns. "Why have 50 links on the home page when 80 percent of our customers go to 8? It doesn't make sense," said Rupert. The new site also makes it easier for people to share problems on Twitter, Facebook, and more, using a simple "Share" button.
In addition to DDOT and DCRA, agencies which have switched to the new template include the D.C. Office on Aging, the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration, the Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Office of the Chief Technology Officer, the Child and Family Services Agency, the Justice Grants Administration, the Office of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Affairs, the Office of Motion Picture and Television Development, the Department of Parks and Recreation, the Department of Public Works, the Department of Real Estate Services, and the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services.
DCRA is asking people to send feedback about what they want to see on the site.
“This is just the beginning," said Argo. "We want our customers to tell us what they like and don’t like and we’ll make adjustments quickly.”