Nextdoor's City Partnerships

www.miep.us/city

As of mid-2016, “... 100,000* U.S. neighborhoods have joined Nextdoor (demo site). That number is 60% of the neighborhoods in the U.S. The following spreadsheet shows the growth in Jefferson County, WA.

Jefferson County Nextdoor stats

Bob Hamlin (DEM Director/Program Manager) has a mantra "The ability to deal with a crisis is largely dependent on the structures and relationships that have been developed before the emergency." On 4/23/2106, Bob agreed to activate the Local City Agencies program so DEM can post emergency preparedness information to the Nextdoor neighborhoods.

Communication is a critical component in these structures and relationships. The NPREP (Neighborhood Preparedness) organization of the Local 20/20 EP action group, NIXLE, the VECOM HAM network, our 2 radio stations, etc. are all vital links in this communication network.

The Nextdoor Local City Agency Program will be a powerful addition to these structures and relationships.

Demonstration of the Nextdoor Local City Agency Program

Click here to view a website Nextdoor has setup to demonstrate its platform, then click on “City Agencies” (in the left sidebar under “Local”) to see all of the demonstration posts from “Officer James Smith”.

A cross platform communication tool

Click here to read about a suggestion for a vehicle for communicating among Nextdoor Neighborhoods that are not adjacent to each other.

I will be amending this web page over time. If you want me to add you to my mailing list to inform you when I update this web page, please send me a note at hphubbard@gmail.com

(GD)

A reverse chronological list of “Nextdoor City” articles

I use Google Alerts to search for ‘ Nextdoor City ‘. When I receive one that contains information that I think will continue to encourage city officials in Jefferson County to embrace the Nextdoor City program, I will first post it here, then send an email to them..

The list below is in reverse chronological order so you see the latest - more timely - articles first.

8/6/2015 - 50-75 articles

Since 1/30/2015, there have been 50-75 articles written around the country about the Nextdoor City Partnership program.

1/30/2015 - Police Chief Jenkins describes (Nextdoor) as “a kind of virtual Neighborhood Watch”

I copied the following from this article.

“According to Northeast senior city strategist Joseph Porcelli, integration with Nextdoor will assist in the creation of what Police Chief Russell Jenkins describes as “a kind of virtual Neighborhood Watch” and the sharing of safety updates, emergency notifications and other news with the community.”

““What’s nice is that we can send a message providing information to a community that may be affected by a particular situation, such as a power outage,” he said at the press conference. “When we want to put out information, we can put it out to the people who need it the most. If people want to share something with us, they can also do so through Nextdoor.”

11/18/2014 - www.nextdoor.com/agency

Request a Nextdoor partnership

Public agencies across the country are using Nextdoor to improve their communities. To request a partnership, please click on this link - https://nextdoor.com/city/apply/

10/22/2014 - A sample conversation between a sheriff and a ND subscriber

Here is a snapshot of a ND conversation between a member of the Oakland Police Department (OPD) and a ND subscriber (Chris) which was made possible because the OPD activated the ND City Partnership program. I found this post at this Twitter link.

10/16/2014 - “Seattle police, city news to be posted on Nextdoor site”

I copied the following from this article.

With more than 193 neighborhoods in the City of Seattle registered, Seattle is already one of Nextdoor’s strongest markets. Jeremie Beebe, director of partnerships for Nextdoor, said Seattle has one of the company’s highest saturation levels, “even rivaling our hometown of San Francisco.”

Beebe said that unlike other social-media platforms, Nextdoor allows police and public officials to interact directly with neighborhood residents. They can poll residents and even post messages.

“They can interact in a private level, ask for feedback or provide information in the case of disaster response,” Beebe said.

Whitcomb calls Nextdoor “a valid social-media platform.”

See this other article about Seattle and ND.

10/7/2014 - “ … The Sheriff’s Department would plan to use Nextdoor much like it already utilizes Nixle.”

I copied the following from this article.

“... The Sheriff’s Department would plan to use Nextdoor much like it already utilizes Nixle, which allows agencies and governments to send out information to individuals who sign up to receive alerts. …”

9/30/2014 - “... local police department in Silicon Valley … early adopter of (Nextdoor) …”

I copied the following from this article.

“It may seem unsurprising that a local police department in Silicon Valley would be an early adopter of a new social network. After all, the Valley is home to Facebook and Twitter.

But the Mountain View California Police Department isn't using it to post photos of fundraisers or highlight weekly safety tips. It's using the startup Nextdoor to let people know about real and potentially dangerous neighborhood situations.

Preet Anand experienced the social-savvy police work firsthand when he moved to a new neighborhood in Silicon Valley. He got a notice from the police, through Nextdoor, alerting him to an incident in an apartment building nearby that had killed two people and filled the building with fumes.

“I literally would not have known about it,” Anand, the CEO of BlueLight, a safety service app, said in a phone interview. “[Nextdoor] fills a very different need, almost like local news. I find value in it.” “

9/20/2014 - Video demo and Help for the “City” program

I just discovered this 31 minute webinar for Nextdoor Public Safety ("City" program) Training

I jumped into the middle of it and found an interesting part that parallels the function Bob has available to him for targeting NIXLE messages to specific areas within Jefferson County.

I am now even more impressed with this Nextdoor "City" program. It has MUCH MORE function than I had thought.

The link below positions the video at 15:19 where this function is described. Just click on the link, then click on the "play" arrow. It will take a few seconds to load and start playing at that spot.

Pete

http://vimeo.com/104035659?from=outro-embed#t=15m19s

9/19/2014 - Bryan PD Partners with Online Neighborhood Watch Website

I copied the following from this article.

“The Neighborhood Enforcement Team will be using Nextdoor to help build stronger and safer neighborhoods throughout the City of Bryan by posting events, community updates, as well as information from the Police Department.”

9/8/2014 - Brookhaven police to communicate with residents via 'Nextdoor'

I copied the following from this article.

“We have always invested in innovative ways to increase safety for our residents,” Police Chief Gary Yandura said. “With Nextdoor, we can help empower neighbors to keep their communities safe and connected, and give them the ability to collaborate on virtual neighborhood watch efforts.”

“Unlike Facebook, it allows you to specifically send emails to certain neighborhoods rather than making a city-wide alert,” Miller said.

Miller said Nextdoor will help police share and collaborate more with its citizens, and establish more of a partnership between residents and police.

“We want to get to know the people in our city,” he said.

9/6/2104 - Nextdoor Partners with Las Vegas to Connect Residents in the Entertainment Capital of the World

I copied the following from this blog post.

“... Joining Nextdoor is another way to further our efforts in making Las Vegas an even better place to call home,” said Mayor Goodman. “Giving residents more avenues to easily and effectively connect with city departments and each other about the things that matter most to their communities will create a stronger and safer Las Vegas.”

More than 110 neighborhoods, representing 60 percent of the city of Las Vegas, have already launched Nextdoor websites. Residents can now expect to receive updates from the the City of Las Vegas, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue, and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

9/2/2014 - How the Sharing Economy is Strengthening Emergency Response and Recovery

I copied the following from this article.

One platform San Francisco is interested in is Nextdoor, a social networking site for neighbors to communicate on topics like crime, safety, services, nearby resources and emergency plans. Nextdoor says it is used in more than 39,000 U.S. neighborhoods and currently covers 99 percent of the neighborhoods in San Francisco. Among other things, the site has the potential to enable a real-time delivery system for city alerts, crowdsourced reports and crisis maps that connect residents to resources.

“With Nextdoor, we have the opportunity to go neighborhood by neighborhood to share preparedness messages, as well as alerts in the event of a real emergency,” said Zamora, adding that the company’s team monitors the city’s alerts and can distribute them to specific areas. “People in each neighborhood can also use the site to list some of the skills and resources they have available and talk about what they could share with each other during an emergency.”

The city put the new system to the test in March, when fire engulfed a six-story, 80-foot-tall building under construction in the Mission Bay neighborhood. San Francisco officials used AlertSF, a text-based notification system, to send a general alert, and Nextdoor then routed that message to users in potentially affected neighborhoods.

Nextdoor has a similar agreement in place with the Houston Office of Emergency Management, which uses the platform to alert residents when safety issues arise in their neighborhoods. Nextdoor hopes to formalize partnerships with more cities in the future, though the service is proving useful for emergency response even without such agreements in place.

“The platform at its core is well positioned to help with emergency response,” said Kelsey Grady, head of communications at Nextdoor, who pointed to recent uses during wildfires in Los Angeles and floods in Colorado. “But when those formal city-level agreements are in place, we can accomplish even more.”

Grady believes that as cities become more aware of Nextdoor, additional emergency management agencies will get involved. The company recently began rolling out a new city platform aimed at helping get localities on board more easily and providing them the ability to exercise more granular control over how they broadcast information.

8/28/2014 - use of Nextdoor during disasters

This 2:47 video was released yesterday (8/27) and talks about the use of Nextdoor during disasters like the 8/24 6.1 earthquake in CA. “U.S. NEWS - Disaster Relief: Know Your Neighbors: A strong relationship with your neighbors may help you survive a disaster. But many people don’t even know their neighbors. So how do we all connect? Nextdoor, a social networking site and app, aims to help people do just that.”

Bob (Hamlin), it almost sounds like you wrote the 3 second script starting at 00:13.

I’ve had conversations with Dave Stanko and Wendy Davis about Nextdoor (ND) and ND’s City program https://nextdoor.com/city/ They are both supportive. Dave is setting up a ND Neighborhood (NDN) in Cape George and Wendy will join her NDN in Port Ludlow.

I am also Bccing the Marrowstone Island Emergency Preparedness Team, and the Neighborhood Preparedness (NPREP) Team.

Pete

8/27/2014 - Video on the value of Nextdoor before, during and after an emergency or disaster

This 02:47 video was released yesterday (8/27) and talks about the use of Nextdoor during disasters like the 8/24 6.1 earthquake in CA. “U.S. NEWS - Disaster Relief: Know Your Neighbors: A strong relationship with your neighbors may help you survive a disaster. But many people don’t even know their neighbors. So how do we all connect? Nextdoor, a social networking site and app, aims to help people do just that.”

8/26/2014

    1. “... An incredible 40% of the total content on Nextdoor in the greater San Francisco Bay Area on Sunday was related to the earthquake, showing that Nextdoor has quickly become a tool for neighbors to use to connect and communicate during natural disasters – proving that a connected community is indeed a stronger community.” (Src)
    2. “... I expect it will grow to include many other neighborhoods throughout Starkville as the benefits become apparent. The social contact is one benefit, but the ability to have your neighbors help act as the "guardians" of your neighborhood are the primary reason for its proliferation.” (Src)
    3. https://nextdoor.com/newsroom/#city

List of possible announcements by … via Nextdoor City Agency

DEM

    1. Subscribe to NIXLE.
    2. Become a HAM: HAM Class on …
    3. Attend and/or join VECOM
    4. Attend a JPREP meeting
    5. Attend an NPREP meeting
    6. Attend ACP
    7. Listen for sirens on 1st Monday of the month at noon for 15 seconds
    8. Listen for tsunami siren for 3 minutes at 10:16 on 10/16 each year as part of WA Shakedown

Sheriff

    1. <road> Road blocked
    2. Cougar spotted at
    3. May Tracer’s report

My East Jefferson Rotary Club presentation

Last week I gave a presentation to my East Jefferson Rotary Club luncheon about Nextdoor and the Nextdoor City Agency Partnership program. A few days later, the President of our club - Ned Luce - not only subscribed to Port Ludlow Nextdoor (and was warmly received by 20 PL ND subscribers) but also wrote a rather glowing article about Nextdoor in his Port Townsend Leader column “life in ludlow”.

Here is a link to that article - http://www.ptleader.com/columns/life-in-ludlow-a-neighborhood/article_2715fddc-a67a-11e4-b1fa-1b855ee6869e.html

Here is a link to the “Story” I wrote about my presentation including a link to the PowerPoint - http://ejrotary.club/Stories/nextdoor-(nd)-and-the-nd-city-agency-partnership-program

If you don't have time to download my PowerPoint, please check out the following: