Get To Know Our New Cities
Celebrating 95 Cities
We just welcomed five new cities: Athens, GA; Chula Vista, CA; Colorado Springs, CO; Gainesville, FL; and Palmdale, CA. With these new additions to our community, we’re now partnering with 95 U.S. cities that are home to more than 29 million people in 37 states and have annual budgets exceeding $98 billion.
As technical assistance from our partners helps cities build their capacity to use data-driven tools, staff can apply what they learn toward ongoing problem-solving and decision-making processes. That’s great news for cities looking to build a culture of turning to empirical evidence to determine what’s truly working—and to learn from what isn’t. As our Executive Director Simone Brody says,
“Moving the needle on city challenges requires knowing what to measure and how — then acting on what you find. By teaching cities how to put data at the core of their decision-making, we’re equipping them with the tools to best solve local challenges and serve their communities.”
Our five new cities plan to apply what they learn to address challenges from public safety to poverty reduction. Meet them and check out their plans below.
Athens, GA
Athens will use performance analytics to measure and communicate progress on economic prosperity goals.
In the City’s words:
The Unified Government of Athens-Clarke County is excited to join the What Works Cities network and engage in a partnership with John Hopkins University’s Center for Government Excellence. We’ll utilize their valuable assistance as we begin the process of designing a performance management program that will measure and communicate our progress toward achieving our strategic priorities. Our goal throughout the process is to develop this framework by focusing initially on our strategic commitment of economic prosperity as a proof of concept to demonstrate the value of using performance data to inform decisions and promote resident engagement.
Chula Vista, CA
Chula Vista will use data to improve public safety outcomes, and increase transparency by sharing key public safety data with residents.
In the City’s words:
“We are thrilled to be part of What Works Cities as we continue our commitment to building a more transparent and open city. We are looking forward to rolling up our sleeves, together with our partners, to advance our use of data to improve City services and broaden public access to information about city performance and operations, with a special focus on public safety, one of our top priorities here in Chula Vista.”
Colorado Springs, CO
Colorado Springs will use performance analytics to measure progress on its strategic plan goals, beginning with local infrastructure investments. The City will also develop an open data policy and explore opportunities for residents to use municipal data.
In the City’s words:
In Colorado Springs, we know our residents expect both an efficient and transparent local government. We look forward to working with What Works Cities to improve our performance management strategies. This will help us to become even more effective in delivering city services, starting with the Mayor’s goal of improving roads, bridges, and stormwater systems. We also look forward to setting the stage to share a valuable community asset by creating an open data policy and exploring opportunities for residents to use municipal data in innovative ways.
Gainesville, FL
Gainesville will apply best practices in data management and performance analytics toward transportation and business lifecycle improvements, part of a partnership announced earlier this year with the University of Florida that aims to transform Gainesville into a “new American city.
In the City’s words:
As Gainesville leads a movement in defining the new American city, we aim to solve legacy challenges in new, innovative ways. The City of Gainesville is driving breakthrough change to solve challenges, such as equity and economic vitality, by leveraging unique and valuable partnerships. Connecting with the national talent and experts of the What Works Cities initiative, we will expand and enhance our use of data and performance analytics to improve decision-making processes.
Palmdale, CA
Palmdale will use data to further its recreation and culture goals, and create an open data policy to target sharing data with the public.
In the City’s words:
We are thrilled to have been selected to be a What Works city. This partnership allows us an unparalleled opportunity to work with the most cutting-edge programs and cities to help us advance efforts to provide quality services for our community.
To learn more about the accomplishments of participating cities, check out our recent report, “What Works Cities: How Local Governments Are Changing Lives.” View a full list of participating cities here.
