In addition to kick-starting the town's economy, St. Pauls officials say the site will benefit residents by allowing them to pay their utility bills online and communicate with town officials via the Internet. The Web site can be accessed at www.stpaulsnc.gov.
"It's a good building block for the town," said Commissioner Jerry Jackson.
The town has been selected as part of a Local E-government Utilization Program, which is sponsored by the Rural Internet Access Authority. The $1.5 million program is designed to improve the delivery of public services to 55 state municipalities and county governments. St. Pauls is the only Robeson County municipality selected for the program.
Money from the program has provided St. Pauls with a new computer, high-speed Internet access, technological support and training to run the town's Web site.
Town Administrator Larry DiRe said the town chose Carolina Online, a Lumberton Internet company, to design the site. He said a town employee will manage the site.
St. Pauls Commissioner Dewitt Rountree says the site will eventually show photographs of commercial real estate and list the square footage.
"It gives businesses another link to see what the town has to offer," Rountree said.
Rountree said each commissioner and department supervisor will have his own town e-mail within a couple of weeks.
DiRe said the site will list town activities such as parades, festivals and school activities, as well as providing an online community newsletter. He said town residents can view the town's zoning ordinances and will be able to apply for conditional-use and zoning permits online. Residents will eventually be able to view agendas and minutes from the town's meetings.
Quelle: The Robesonian, 01.05.2004
