The City of Fresno has officially rolled out its complaint reporting app called ‘Fresgo’. The smartphone app lets people take pictures and report issues like pot holes, downed stop lights, and other problems throughout the city.
The app, called Fresgo, is intended to replace the cumbersome and sometimes confusing process of filling out paper work or contacting the appropriate city department to report issues.
Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin says the app lets people take a picture, tag their location, and send it straight to the city to fix their complaint.
“When our residents of Fresno can one-click order on Amazon, or they can track down to the second when their Uber car is arriving, it is critically important that we here at city hall respond in a similar fashion,” Swearengin said.
Swearengin says the app, which cost 48-thousand dollars to develop but is free to install, is still in its early phases and they are working out some bugs.
Other cities around the country already have similar apps that allow residents to file complaints and concerns.
The Fresgo App also contains frequently asked questions like watering and bus schedules and airport status.
Four-term City Council Member Sal Quintero says he remembers the days that complaints had to be filed in triplicate, delivered by hand, and frequently went un-addressed.
“Seeing what we call requests for service, getting more things addressed in a timely manner really shows a lot of progress,” Quintero said.
While the app lets users use GPS to tag their location, it does not have the ability to track where a person is.
In coming months other features will be added such as reporting city code or blight violations, missed garbage pickup, illegal dumping and graffiti.
