- MEMBERS RECEIVE ACCESS TO:
- CIO Leadership Group
  CIO Leadership Task Force provides a unique forum for Chief Information Officers from the largest cities and counties in the U.S. to privately interact, both through an online collaboration site and in regular face-to-face meetings. It offers these leaders an on-going opportunity to share information and experiences, and to discussing IT challenges facing larger community jurisdictions.
- Digital Infrastructure
  Task Force
  The Digital Infrastructure Task Force is a collaborative networking group for government IT professionals. Through timely exchange of information and experiences, both online and through regular face to face meetings, municipal and regional government members help each other to make smarter technology decisions for their communities.
- Law Enforcement
  IT Task Force
  The Law Enforcement Task Force is a collaborative networking group for local law enforcement officials from across the nation. In online and regular face to face meetings, both sworn and civilian law enforcement officials come here to discuss technology trends, collaboration and information sharing opportunities within the local law enforcement community.
- Private Events
  and Webinars
- Exclusive White Papers
- JOIN:
- Public Sector
- Private Sector
Digital Communities Home
Introduction
Feature Articles
Local Government Events
Contact
Digital Communities Blogs
Digital Citizen Pulse
Broadband Nation
Web 2.0 Convergence
In the Trenches
International Beat
Notes from a City CIO
Intelligent Communities
MuniGov 2.0
Surveys and Awards
Digital Cities Survey
Digital Counties Survey
DGAA Awards
Best of the Web Awards
Reference and
Resource Library
White Papers
Exclusives
Webinars
Best Practices
Digital Communities
Special Focus
Current Issue
Past Issues
Subscribe

Digital Communities
Industry Members

Click sponsor logos for whitepapers, case studies, and best practices.

Digital Counties Focus -- Chesterfield County, Va.

December 13, 2010 By Wayne Hanson

Last year, Chesterfield County, Va. -- population 306,000 -- leveraged environmental initiatives to lower the county's energy requirements while reducing costs. Here are some highlights among the county's many improvements and innovations which garnered a first-place finish in the 2010 Digital Counties Survey:

The county began applying energy saving measures to buildings in 2004 that have since driven down electricity, natural gas and propane costs in administrative and court buildings by 20 percent.
Within the past year, 30 percent of IT staff have begun teleworking, with a savings of 26,000 commuter miles, 1,400 gallons of gas, and 10-16 tons of carbon emissions, among others. The county plans to expand the program throughout the county in the next few years.
The Parks and Recreation Department is expanding remote control of field lighting, irrigation and other equipment to reduce staff hours, travel expense and cost of electricity.
The county has also improved citizen engagement. A recent social media policy, for example, allows the county to engage with citizens at the departmental level.
All citizen-facing projects -- such as the website redesign, Citizen Wi-Fi and Citizen GIS mapping -- have members of the public on those project steering committees.
Among the long list of accomplishments, Chesterfield County strives for openness and puts its Board Meetings, special sessions and budget meetings online and in recorded form for viewing.

| More

Persistence Pays Off for Chesterfield County, Va.

Add Your Comment

Name *

Comment *

You are solely responsible for the content of your comments. We reserve the right to remove comments that are considered profane, vulgar, obscene, factually inaccurate, off-topic, or considered a personal attack.

In Our Library

White Papers | Exclusives Reports | Webinar Archives | Best Practices and Case Studies

WHITEPAPER: D Block Spectrum Act and the FirstNet Broadband Network. What does it all mean?: On Feb 22, 2012, the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 was enacted into law. This law will ensure the establishment of a nationwide, interoperable public safety broadband network in every state and territory in the U.S. Learn about the new law and what you can do to prepare for it now.
New Research Reveals Surprising Trend for Funding Innovation: Listen to an informative discussion with Digital Communities members to learn how you can use your IT savings and efficiencies to do the new things you have been waiting to do.
Continuity with Cloud Solutions: Cloud solutions provide agility, flexibility and scalability to government agencies. In an emergency situation where an agency’s infrastructure and resources are impacted, prioritization and restoration become critical elements of a disaster recovery plan. The flexibility of cloud services helps agencies make adjustments to processing capacity on demand.

Latest From Digital Communities Features

Follow @dcommunities

Law Enforcement Digital Infrastructure

Digital Communities members get access to our collaboration task forces

427 Members

77 Discussions

84 Files

Latest members Become a member

Digital Communities members get access to our collaboration task forces

669 Members

145 Discussions

150 Files

Latest members Become a member

Featured White Papers & Reports

The Future of the Desktop in Government

Until recently, there was no alternative to the familiar desktop computer, and its expensive upgrades and maintenance requirements. For cash-strapped local governments, the desktop computer is quickly becoming an unsustainable option for future progress. Now, a technology known as virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) offers an alternative. It can be significantly more affordable than buying individual computers for every employee, and it provides similar capability. This paper shows how VDI is the future of the desktop and is a game-changer for local governments.

View Full Library

Events

GTC East

Don't miss this opportunity to see the latest in digital government solutions, keep abreast of current policy issues and network with key government executives, technologists and industry specialists.

View All Events