Plan 2020 will use mySidewalk, an online community platform, to engage Indy residents

INDIANAPOLIS (May 14, 2015) – Plan 2020, the Bicentennial Plan for Indianapolis, will start using mySidewalk, an online engagement tool that provides an opportunity for Indianapolis residents to have meaningful conversation with their leaders and peers. Plan 2020 will use mySidewalk to generate ideas, gather valuable feedback and measure the impact of a community’s contributions in a productive, two-way dialogue.

MySidewalk provides opportunities for government and citizens to work together by connecting civic challenges to community problem-solvers. It allows members of the community to contribute ideas on their own schedules and at their own pace, allowing for a broader audience to participate.

The questions posed by the Plan 2020 team will evolve and change to reflect the conversations taking place throughout the planning process. Indianapolis residents can add their own ideas, photos or videos. Participants can see, step-by-step, where their ideas stand in the Plan 2020 drafting process, and they will know who on the Plan 2020 team is listening to their feedback and implementing their ideas.

Members of the Plan 2020 project team are able to check the progress of the site and find out how many people are engaging. “Plan 2020 is an opportunity to update and upgrade public engagement for the 21st century. While mySidewalk will not replace more traditional engagement methods, the 24-7 accessibility exponentially increases our ability to engage with the community in an accessible, transparent and user-friendly manner,” said Brad Beaubien, Planning Administrator for Plan 2020.

MySidewalk is directly accessible to anyone with internet access and is one of the ways Plan 2020 and the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee (GIPC) hope to redefine public engagement in Indianapolis. “GIPC’s approach to community engagement is to build on-going, enduring commitments from every sector of the community and, as we have done so many times before, advance the City of Indianapolis,” said Brooke Thomas, Deputy Director for the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee. “The feedback we receive through mySidewalk will affirm whether Plan 2020 is addressing values that the Indianapolis community cares about.”

The Indianapolis community can explore Plan 2020’s mySidewalk page by visiting this page.