311 Request ‘Completed’ - New Category

When someone submits a 311 request, but someone ELSE has already submitted the same request (a duplicate issue), all non-duplicate requests are marked as COMPLETED/CLOSED. However, only the Primary 311 request is kept, while all others are marked as Closed. This creates confusion, because if someone goes back and checks on the Status of their 311 Request, they will see that it has been ‘closed’, but the issue still remains. This causes confusion. 

Example:

Say someone reports a streetlight out and submits a 311 request. However, additional people do the same thing, the 311 center will keep one request open, and then mark all others as Completed.  However, the duplicate requests were not completed, yet the 311 person marks them as such.

The closing of the supplemental tickets is confusing and frustrating, because if you go to look and see if the work was completed, and it was not, then you tend to open up another reques. However, then THAT additional request gets closed as Completed as well.  The circle goes around and round.

Suggestion - Couldn't there be an additional category like 'duplicate request' instead of Completed for these types of situations?  This way, the supplemental submissions could be tracked accordingly both internally, and for public view.

311 Requests Completed Not by Ward-Specific Method

If someone makes a 311 request, and the request is solely in a Ward boundary, it is mostly ok. However, if someone makes a 311 request in a Business Distriction, well, some business districts are split between Alderdmanic Wards, therefore, requests don’t completely get completed unless you open multiple 311 requests. The CDOT/Streets and Sanitation workers will only do THEIR specific request, and not look beyond their specific request.

Example: If someone posts signs on the 4 corners at Foster/Clark, those corners are controlled by 3 different Wards: Foster to the South, 47th, Clark to the East, 48th, Clark to the West, 40th. Therefore, if there are 4 signs posted, one on each corner, 4 311 requests must be made and it is quite likely that 3 different Streets and Sanitation workers will remove just THEIR 311 requests. It’s ridiculous.

Notes On Your 311 Request

Why are there no notes shown on the 311 system?  In that, when you go to look at your 311 request, sometimes it will say 'see notes'.  Yet, the person that submitted the request cannot see the notes/comments.  Many requests are marked as 'not completed - see notes' or ‘completed - see notes’, and yet the work was in fact was not completed, but should have been.

Suggestion - Wouldn't it make more sense to provide Problic Notes in the system to people can see what is happening or what did/did not happen? Why is that private/confidential information?

Following Requests Ability

If someone has a 311 account, and they submit a request from that account, that person can track that specific request via the online website. However, you must know the specific 311 request number in order to accruately track your request.  That inverse logic doesn't make sense, and you should be able to follow/get email updates on your OWN requests submitted.

If you do not have an account, and submit the 311 request, there is a FOLLOW button when submitting a non-account-type request.

More specifically, that FOLLOW button does NOT work when you try to follow your own requests submitted via your own login.   

Therefore, you CAN follow a request if it is a) not your request or b) you submitted it without an account.  The system will allow you to Follow any/all requests, just not your own. 

Therefore, in order to track a request, you literally have to log in and look individually, keeping track of the 311 request ticket number that was provided to you. 

Question:  Why doesn't the Follow Request button work when you have an account?  Why doesn't the system allow you to receive an email update when something has changed on your specific request? 

Notification of Status Change

It has been noticed that when some 311 requests are closed, a user will get an email notification stating the specific status.  Initially, when the request is open, you get an email.  However, it is sporadic and inconsistent when an update is provided on your specific ticket.  In that, sometimes you get an email notification when your ticket has changed status, and other times, you don’t.

Question:  Is it the user/updater of the ticket that allows for the update to be sent – does the city worker trigger that or is it some other mechanism that provides the email notification of the update? Why isn’t the update status mechanism consistently applied?

Completed Requests

It has been noticed that people/workers are closing requests out, but have not been actually completed. 

Question: Why / how are people allowed to close requests out, when they are not completed?

Additional 311 Categories

When submitting a 311 request, the # of choices is limited. In that, there are very few choices allowable, in addition, the sub-categories are not all inclusive. Below is a list of a few additional categories/menus that could be added.

Political Signs Placements

The 90th General Assembly legislation on Political signage is as follows:

• Signs shall be no larger than 2 feet by 3 feet and  that all signs shall be made of  a  biodegradeable  material.

• That the number of signs on private property shall be limited to one sign for each  candidate  for  each  public office. 

• Prohibits posting signs closer than 20 feet from the property  line  or street.

• Prohibits the posting of signs on  public property.

• Campaign  signs may not be posted on public ways, utility rights-of-way, easements, or any public property.  If a  sign is  posted  in  these areas, the corporate authorities of the municipality where the sign is posted  or,  if  the  sign  is located  in  an  unincorporated area, the county board of the county where the sign is posted, shall order the  removal  of the campaign sign.

• A ‘campaign free zone’ extends 100 feet from the entrance of a polling place. If a political sign is placed withing 100 feet of a polling place, that site administrator should remove that signage.

  According to an email from the Chicago Board of Elections, if a political sign is placed incorrectly on any other ‘surface’, a 311 request must be made to remove that sign. Unfortunately, there is no specific 311 category for this, and therefore, the CBOE stated to submit a Sanitation complaint. But, submitted a Sanitation complaint is entirely the wrong category to use, for the Sanitation category is not to be used for that intended purpose.

  Sanitation Complaint Verbiage from 311: Use this service type to report unsanitary conditions on private property that should cause the owner to be cited for violating the City's sanitation codes. Certain questions must be answered to initiate an investigation: the location address and what type of problem exists. It is helpful to know who is responsible for the problem, if known. If you can leave your name and phone number, the inspectors sometimes need to contact the complainant in order to issue a citation to the violator.

  Question: Whis is there no specific 311 request to accommodate for this grievance?

Vandalism/Destruction/Graffiti - At the present time, there are no categories to report vandalism and/or destruction of city property that deal with the following municipal codes:

10-8-270

10-8-320

10-8-325

8-4-060

8-1-061

8-4-120

It seems that more and more graffiti has hit our city streets.  However, there are not enough categories to denote ‘locations’ there this might occur.

Additionally, the number of items where this destruction could occur are very limited. See Signage page.

Example:

Graffiti occurs on bike racks, yet there is no drop down category for such a physical item.

Graffiti has occurred on ‘decorative structures' or ‘planters’ located on city sidewalks, yet there is no category for such items.

Leaves on the Street – Since the City stops is street sweeping way to early, before any of the leaves have even fallen, leaves continue to pile up side streets causing drain clogging, etc.

According to IL statue 415 ILCS 105-4, it is illegal to blow leaves onto the street from your property and/or parkway. See Leaves page. Yet, there is no method of submitting this type of situation on 311. The only way to do it is with a Sanitation complaint, but that is not the correct category to submit such a grievance. 

Question: Whis is there no specific 311 request to accommodate for this grievance?

Images Submitted - Not Viewable

It has been stated by a Ward Superintendent that the images we upload to 311 are not visible by the City Worker addressing the complaint.  Yet the 311 workers themselves, the person on the phone said the images are available to be seen/viewed to better understand the comlaint. 

Question: Are images visible to the intended party?  How do you explain this discrepancy?