General Information
Although the Web Committee hopes that you find this new website contains a wealth of information, there are areas that still remain “Under Construction” and we ask you bear with us as we work to further enhance the site. If you have any suggestions for improvements – or even just spot a typo – please send your comments to [email protected]. We may not be able to incorporate any changes until sometime in the future, but please know your suggestion will be considered for a future enhancement. We consider this website to belong to the community and value your input!
Transition Plan
Phase 1 – Completed
The new website will have both a “public facing” side as well as a resident login side. To address the two most prevalent concerns about the current website, the vast majority of information relevant to residents will available on this “public” side and not require a login.
The URL for the “public facing” side of the new website is SalemtowneOregon.com. The goal of this new website is to provide a wealth of information to both residents and non-residents without the requirement to login. Effort will be made to start automating the use of online forms.
The existing website (Salemtowne.us) will continue to require a login for confidential resident information will continue to be maintained as has been done in the past primarily by the Board Chair and SCA Manager. Residents can reach the this site either directly or by clicking on the Resident Login button on the new website.
The new website was presented to the SCA Board of Directors on December 17, 2021 and approved as the primary website for Salemtowne moving forward.
Phase 2 – In Progress
Work will be ongoing to further enhance the SalemtowneOregon.com website to include the automation of all Salemtowne forms. The Salemtowne.us website will continue to be used for confidential, resident only information that can only be obtained through us of a login. The Web Committee will assume responsibility and authority for the management of this site. Extraneous information that does not require confidentiality and/or serves as an archive may be removed assuming there is no additional cost incurred and the time required is not excessive.
Information deemed necessary of confidentiality and/or a login include:
- Resident Directory and other personal information.
- Online Communication Forum
- Reservations
- Archived Information
- Resident Newsletter
The Web Committee will begin to evaluate new options for the Resident (Login required) side of the website.
Barring unforeseen events, the Web Committee envisions completing this phase in the Spring of 2022.
Phase 3
Although it is envisioned that enhancements to the website will be an ongoing process as new features are requested, the public facing side of the website will be considered “finished” at the conclusion of this phase.
Background
May 2021: Website Committee was reestablished.
June 2021: Board decision was made to renew the contract with Community123 for the current website for an additional year. New Web Committee Chair gave a 35 minute presentation to the Board proposing an updated version of the website. After general discussion, the committee was asked to continue their work and also develop a “transition plan”.
August 2021: Survey was distributed to residents. Fifty-eight surveys were returned. The majority of those who responded (43) said they currently use the website. Of these, 12 use it monthly or rarely, 17 weekly and 14 use it daily.
Respondents said they liked having access to:
- important news and current information,
- availability of documents and forms,
- post on the community forum, and
- resident contact information.
The most prevalent responses regarding what people liked least about the website fell into three categories:
- difficulty/inability getting access,
- difficulties in navigating the site and finding information, and
- the squabbling, bickering and snarky comments on the forum.
Regarding the use of features under consideration for inclusion in the new website, the responses in order of importance were:
- Timely news for most residents
- Free classified ads
- Online Resident Directory
- Online surverys
- Online facility reservations
- Online forms
- Community 2-way discussions
- Lighthearted / get to know others
