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Mayor Bill Given says a 311 service would help build on the existing Citizen Contact Centre (Photo: Shaun Penner / EverythingGP)
centralized contact service

City of Grande Prairie applying to establish 311 service

Aug 25, 2020 | 12:34 PM

Grande Prairie City Council has directed City staff to apply for a 311 service through the Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), that would provide residents a simplified and centralized phone number to call in regards to all programs, services and non-emergency issues related to the Swan City.

311 services already exist in many municipalities around the North America, including in Edmonton and Calgary, and Grande Prairie Mayor Bill Given says the City has been working towards establishing something like this here for some time.

“The City has been working over the last number of years to, really, try to simplify the customer experience for people who are looking to interact with municipal services,” said Given. “It is essentially one short phone number that allows residents to contact the City and access a wide range of non-emergency municipal services.”

The first step in establishing the service is to apply through the CRTC. The City will then work towards rolling out the service once approval is granted.

Residents who are looking to inquire about any City programs or services are currently able to go through the Citizen Contact Centre. Given says the 311 service will help build and improve on that service.

“That Citizen Contact Centre has been an improvement, by allowing people to access a wide range of City services through the one main City phone number,” said Given. “But, 311 will be an improvement in that it is a much shorter number, easier to remember, and is becoming an established standard for accessing municipal services across North America.”

More details on the service will be distributed once approval is granted from the CRTC.