Town looking into improving website

April 10, 2025 · 0 Comments

By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Town of Caledon staff will be working to improve Caledon’s website in the coming years.

At Caledon Council’s April 8 General Committee meeting, Ward 2 Councillor Dave Sheen brought forward a motion asking that Caledon’s website be improved.

“I’ve often come across stale, dated information or [found that] things are hard to find. I’ve heard members of the public come here to the podium and talk about how hard it is to use the search function on the town’s website,” said Sheen. “I truly believe that Caledon is committed to delivering exceptional customer service to our residents, and this is certainly a significant tool that should be working well for them to access information.”

Sheen said his motion was brought forward to ask Town staff to investigate what options may be available, what they might cost, and when they could be implemented.

“Residents increasingly rely on the Town’s website as their primary source for accessing essential services, staying informed about community events, reviewing public records, and participating in civic processes, making it a vital tool for fostering community engagement and transparent governance,” reads Sheen’s motion.

Town staff noted Caledon’s current website platform will expire in 2027 and that staff have already begun preparing for what will come next.

Staff acknowledged the site could be better and are hoping to come to Council with a budget ask this year for improvements to the site. Staff are also conscious of next year’s municipal election and do not want to make large changes at a time when access to information is needed most.

“We’re strategizing when the best time is to move that data to the new site, but we continue to modernize and improve the data at our site that we have currently,” said staff.

Regional Councillor Mario Russo suggested referring Sheen’s motion back to staff so they can create a workshop for Council and educate Council on the work they’ve done so far and what is planned for the future.

The referral was unanimously supported by Council.