By GINNY COOPER MCCARLEY / Staff Writer

COLUMBIANA—The Shelby County License website received a facelift, Shelby County Chief Operating Officer Phil Burns told Shelby County commissioners during an Aug. 11 meeting.

The website redesign will “improve communication and increase awareness of the workflows and documents needed to conduct licensing transactions,” according to information Burns distributed during the meeting.

The new site will feature a variety of applications designed to help citizens better understand the process such as Shelby Chat, a real time chat function that allows citizens to ask questions to County licensing agents during business hours without calling or visiting the office. An online collection of interactive PDF checklists, called What Do I Need to Bring?, addresses detail information on a variety of topics and are designed to ensure citizens know the documentation required on specific transactions.

In addition, the site now features an online survey where citizens can provide feedback on their experience, as well as comments or suggestions.

“We’re getting a lot more granular with information so we can education the public,” Burns said.

The end goal of the project is to have “better informed citizens” and “increased communication,” Burns said.

Shelby County license offices currently have an average transaction volume of 25,000 tag or license instruments per month, approximately 300,000 per year, Burns told the commission.

County Manager Alex Dudchock emphasized that the new website would increase “consistency.”

“It can be very frustrating for folks who have been (at the license office) for two and a half hours to learn they will not be served that day,” Dudchock said.

The increased communication on the redesigned website will prevent citizens who do not have all of the information from waiting in line, Burns said.

“Education on the front end will streamline the process,” Burns said. “This will save time for everyone.”