Grey Highlands Receives Innovation Award for Customized Online Service App

Toronto, Ontario, August 22, 2019 – The Peter J. Marshall Innovation Award Jury presented its highest award to the Municipality of Grey Highlands for developing an innovative mobile app to improve customer service and community engagement. The Award was presented at the 2019 AMO Conference in Ottawa.

As a small, rural municipality, Grey Highlands found that off-the-shelf mobile apps tended to be tailored to large communities and just didn’t work for their needs. Staff found an innovative solution to develop their own customized app that is also fully integrated with the municipal website. In addition to allowing citizens to report potholes, make online payments and check for important emergency information, they can also complete surveys and provide feedback on hot topics.

The project demonstrated many of the P.J. Marshall Award’s criteria: innovation, tangible benefits to the community, improved efficiency, and the ability for other municipal governments to use the project’s concept.

”Despite a small budget and limited staff resources, Grey Highlands found a solution that met local needs and is improving customer service while delivering all of the efficiencies of serving the public online,” said Pat Vanini, AMO Executive Director.

“This award is recognition of our commitment to innovation in Grey Highlands, and prioritizing customer service and enhanced program delivery to support our businesses and residents,” said Mayor Paul McQueen, Municipality of Grey Highlands.  “Council and staff will continue to explore and deliver innovative solutions to support the progressive future we envision for Grey Highlands. I particularly want to thank staff for making us proud.”

The P.J. Marshall Award is an annual competitive process to acknowledge municipalities who have had creativity and success in implementing new, innovative ways of serving the public. It is sponsored by AMO, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks & Treasurers of Ontario, the Canadian Council for Public Private Partnerships, the Municipal Finance Officers’ Association, and the Ontario Municipal Administrators’ Association.

In addition to Grey Highlands, the City of Markham and the Region of York also received awards this year, for innovative approaches to recycling textile waste and the use of video streaming in provincial offences court.

AMO is a non-profit organization representing almost all of Ontario’s 444 municipal governments.  AMO supports strong and effective municipal government in Ontario and promotes the value of municipal government as a vital and essential component of Ontario and Canada’s political system.