The City of Whitewater is opening new doors to public information with its redesigned website and new mobile application. With accessibility standards and transparency kept in mind through the redesign, city information is now simpler to access.
The updates to the city’s website reflect an effort to adjust to accessibility standards that previously were not fully supported ahead of an upcoming deadline to meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards. In addition, the city is using the new website and app to provide a more user-friendly and transparent experience.
The new website and mobile app launched near the end of March. This new website contains the same core content as the previous site, but with a redesigned layout and reorganized content. The mobile app mirrors design elements of the website, but with a greater focus on city news and updates. It has a “Feed” tab dedicated to announcements and press releases and an “Events” tab that lists events and their dates.
While expanding the city’s digital presence was a priority, improving transparency through ease of use was equally important.
“This project was driven by a need to modernize our digital presence, improve transparency and create a more user-friendly experience,” Whitewater Chief of Staff Becky Magestro said. “We also felt our previous website was somewhat clunky and needed a more streamlined, intuitive design.”
The former website consisted of two layers: the original website and a user-friendly interface on top. According to Zoning Specialist Llana Dostie, the city’s website provider, Apptegy, now includes built-in ADA accessibility features. This change allowed the city to more easily meet the standards.
To meet new ADA standards, the new website complies with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA. WCAG is a set of international standards for making digital content accessible. These guidelines are widely used to help organizations and governments meet ADA standards.
“With the upcoming requirement to meet ADA compliance by April 2027—including conformance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards—we saw this as a great opportunity to transition into a new platform and approach,” Magestro said. “This ensures our website and digital content are accessible to all users through features like screen reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, clear contrast, captioned media and accessible documents. The more people we can reach across our community, the better. We want residents to feel informed, connected and involved.”
This transition did not happen without some issues. In the days following the website’s launch, there would be a few instances of Error 404 (Page Not Found) if accessed through Google search results. The new site uses a different URL structure than the old website. In those few days, Google search results still displayed results with the older link structure that returned error messages. This happened for at least the Common Council, Public Works Committee and Aquatic Center Committee pages. However, this was resolved soon after.
The redesign website is now available through the city’s website, and the mobile app is available to download through the Google Play Store and Apple App Store under “City of Whitewater.”
