Media Release

​ALACHUA COUNTY, FL - Alachua County has been recognized with two Achievement Awards from the National Association of Counties (NACo). The awards honor innovative, effective County government programs that enhance services for Residents.

The County was recognized for its “Veteran Benefits Triage/Education Sessions” in the category of Civic Education and Public Information. The County was also recognized for its “Irrigation Inspection and Enforcement Program” in the category of Information Technology.

The Veteran Benefits Triage/Education Sessions are offered in advance of services. The sessions provide information to several people at one time. This allows staff to spend more individual time with those who are eligible to apply for assistance.

The Irrigation Inspection and Enforcement Program is a web portal created by the County’s Information and Telecommunications Department for the County’s Environmental Protection Department. It allows irrigation professionals to register their business with the County, which in turn creates a secure user account for the portal. Users can fill out an online application for each irrigation job they submit, upload documents for the job, and pay for one or more jobs in a single “shopping cart” checkout. Users can track the status of their jobs throughout the required approval and inspection process.

Speaking about the awards, Alachua County Manager Lee A. Niblock said, “We are thrilled to be recognized by NACo for both projects which benefit our citizens.” He continued, “In Alachua County, our staff are committed to working together to improve processes and implement technology throughout our organization to maximize efficiencies. Thank you, NACo, for this recognition.”

NACo will recognize award-winning counties at its 2016 Annual Conference and Exposition on July 22 through 25 in Los Angeles County, California.

For more information about the Veterans Benefits Triage/Education Sessions Award, contact Alachua County Veteran Services Director Kim Smith at 352-264-6740 or kismith@alachuacounty.us.

For more information about the Irrigation Inspection and Enforcement Program Award, contact Alachua County Web Services Supervisor Chris Nielson at 352-338-3331 or cnielsen@alachuacounty.us.