Damian Radcliffe writes about how hyperlocal sites are putting data into local context:
For instance, J-Lab New Voices grantee NeighborWebSJ has used maps to report on the ‘Streetlight Shutoff Program’: a cost-saving initiative to permanently switch off certain streetlights. Although it saved the city $77,000 a year, many residents and businesses argued the scheme increased the risk of crime. “There are some major streets that took some major hits,” resident Davide Vieira was quoted as saying after he reported numerous lights out on Alum Rock Avenue, including at 13 bus stops.
In response to these community concerns the website included a Google Map to indicate where lights were out across the city, as well as information on how to report issues to the authorities.
This reporting helped to identify that some lights had been turned off by accident while others were turned back on as a result of public pressure, including those at the bus stops on Alum Rock Avenue. In February 2013 the city agreed to reconnect 900 of the streetlights that had been previously shut off as part of the budget cuts in 2008-09.
The team at NeighborWebSJ has also produced a Google Map shows all of the 2012 homicides in San Jose, with data coming from police press releases, and links to other media.
Read more from his post here.
