City website getting fresh look

The new year can bring about new looks, and the city of Mountain Brook’s website is getting a bit of a facelift.

GIS Manager Hunter Simmons said the initial redo of the website was proposed by Mayor Stewart Welch. The goal was to be more active and connected with the community while make the site more aesthetically pleasing.

Simmons said the content of the website will remain the same, but they’ve made it easier to find certain pages and added tabs to the menu. One of those is an “I want to …” tab that can help residents find specific actions, like pay a bill or report a problem, without having to dig through different sections of the old website. 

He also said the action center, which is used to ask questions, get in touch with certain people and anonymously report problems, will be placed in a more prominent location.

“That tool was kind of varied a little, and hopefully it’ll be more of a focus now,” Simmons said. Other frequently visited pages will be added to a footer menu bar, too.

Residents and visitors will easily be able to find links to Mountain Brook Schools, Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce, Emmet O’Neal Library and government functions. Simmons said the new city calendar — which will include links to meeting agendas and minutes — can also be linked to share schedules to personal Google calendars.

The search function will be updated and easier to use too, and Simmons said it will get better with use. Finally, he said a full directory has been included for ease of contact, and the site has been programmed to varying types of devices and screen sizes.

Simmons said the new website, located at mtnbrook.org, will likely be rolled out in mid-January.

This story is part of our Year in Preview. See more here.