GROVELAND, Fla. — City leaders unveiled a new communication platform Thursday to improve how officials share information with residents during emergencies and to rebuild public trust after a series of water-related issues last month.
The initiative, called Groveland Connect, was announced during a community workshop and will allow the city to send direct alerts to residents, via texts and emails, about public safety incidents, utility disruptions, city events and other updates.
The platform comes after Groveland experienced three water main breaks in September, leaving thousands of residents without usable water for several days. The incidents prompted frustration among residents, many of whom said they were dissatisfied with the city’s communication during the crisis.
“It’s scary because it’s like, is it safe to take a shower? Or when we brush our teeth?” resident Jamileth Soto said. “You know what I mean … that kind of stuff.”
During a presentation to the City Council, city communications staff acknowledged shortcomings in their response to the water emergencies. Officials said they primarily relied on Facebook to distribute updates.
“We communicated the best we could with the tools we had at the time,” Groveland’s Lorri Shaban, city consultant, said. “We communicated very directly. We communicated effectively. What we didn’t do was communicate with empathy. And that was a big miss on all of our parts.”
City officials said Groveland Connect is intended to provide a more direct line of communication with residents during emergencies and to keep them informed about routine city business.
“Our objective is to restore and sustain public trust through consistency, empathy and responsiveness,” Shaban said.
The city is still training staff on the new system but officials said they are prepared to use it if another emergency occurs before the platform’s official launch on Nov. 1.
City leaders hope the program will help strengthen communication with residents and improve confidence in the city’s response during future emergencies.
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