The latest in a series of posts on the City web site
Gadfly was startled when President Waldron called attention to a City hotline during the Council meeting last week.
A hotline?!
See the Controller page of the City web site.
Never knew.
Sounds like it may be a recent addition, for the text reads, “Our office is pleased to announce the activation of a hotline for the City of Bethlehem.”
It’s purpose: “This hotline will be for all tips from employees and residents of the city, as well as any other interested parties concerned with the efficiency and effectiveness of the city government.”
Now this hotline is not for our day-to-day problems — potholes and the like.
We have the Service Center for that kind of stuff. Gadfly hasn’t used the Service Center yet but will gradually get to it as he familiarizes himself with the new web site.
Given the function of a Controller, Gadfly figures this hotline — on which you can be anonymous if you want — is the place to report matters like waste, improper behavior by City personnel, and illegality in fiscal matters.
But President Waldron spoke if it as useful for a variety of matters like the employee disgruntlement about permit issuance we have been following lately.
In any event, Gadfly didn’t know about this hotline and figured if he didn’t, you might not know either.
Sounds like a good thing, an important thing to be aware of.
Gadfly will put a link to it on the right-hand sidebar.
Just one thing. Isn’t the hotline kind of buried there on the Controller page? If you had something to report and were looking for a place to do it, would you look there?
Gadfly wonders if the hotline presence and existence shouldn’t be more prominently displayed up front on the web site.
He can think of a reason why not to make it more visible in that way but for now thinks the positive effect would outweigh the potentially negative.
