By AMY JONES / Associate Editor

HOOVER — Hoover citizens who click onto the city’s website have a surprise waiting for them.

The website, Hooveral.org, has been completely revamped, with new capabilities and offerings for residents.

Mindy Neureiter, part of the website leadership team, said it has been about a decade since Hoover last rolled out a new city website.

“So we were just looking to increase our offerings and our presence and make some improvements in the process,” Neureiter said.

Neureiter said the biggest improvement for the website is better navigation capabilities, which allow users to get “almost anywhere” on the site from the homepage through the use of drop-down menus.

Also, before, users searching for information about specific services, such as trash pick-up or city events, had to know what department would handle those services. Now, users can find information on specific services without knowing the department, Neureiter said.

She also referenced two buttons on the homepage labeled “Let Us Help” and “Notify Me” as new offerings that should help citizens interact with city government. The Let Us Help button links to a page that allows residents to ask questions, offer suggestions, report problems and request services. The Notify Me button allows residents to sign up for email alerts, emergency alerts, agendas and minutes, among other items.

The new website was launched Feb. 7. The city also launched new Twitter and Facebook pages on the same day. Those pages can be found at Facebook.com/HooverAlabamaCityHall and @HooverAL_City on Twitter.

The city’s Parks and Recreation Department also has new Facebook and Twitter pages, which can be found at Facebook.com/HooverAlabamaParks and @HooverAL_Parks on Twitter.

“Our goal is to allow citizens and visitors to quickly find what they’re looking for and to effectively interact with departments and elected officials of the city of Hoover,” Neureiter said.