Mesquite Has Good Reason to be Proud of its City's Tech
- Citizens: 143,000+
- Location: Mesquite, Texas
- Tyler Solutions: Enterprise Permitting & Licensing, Data & Insights
- Years as Tyler Client: 3
From Historic Mesquite Inc., which preserves the historic structures of the City of Mesquite, Texas; to the Mesquite Rodeo Championship, which led government legislation to deem Mesquite the Rodeo Capital of Texas in 1993; to holding the 10th longest reign as a Tree City USA® for meeting four core standards of proper tree management — Mesquite truly embodies what it means to be Texan. Nothing says the Lone Star State like old west history, cowboy staples, and the great outdoors.
In addition to the preservation of Texas heritage, Mesquite represents the “everything is bigger in Texas” adage by being one of the largest cities in the Dallas metroplex. Any large city brings unique challenges for the local government that runs it, and Mesquite is no exception. Mesquite’s local government staff is more than capable of conquering any challenges thrown their way. The city faced the issues of cumbersome processes and disparate systems head on, and the city’s government, contractors, citizens, and peers benefited as a result.
Fighting Texas-Sized Problems With Texas-Sized Tenacity
When the city realized it had five different departments utilizing several different software programs with the inability to access other departments’ data, staff buckled down and found the perfect unifying tool to meet their needs: Tyler Technologies’ Enterprise Permitting & Licensing (powered by EnerGov™). Enterprise Permitting & Licensing is a powerful, flexible software solution for enterprise workflow and process regulation. Mesquite uses Enterprise Permitting & Licensing and its built-in, Esri®-based GIS functionality to handle everything from planning, permitting, and licensing to asset management and citizen requests.
We needed to be able to see all permits in the city, regardless of what department needed the information.
Melissa Davis
Enterprise Permitting & Licensing System and Development Process Analyst, Mesquite, TX
When the city realized it had five different departments utilizing several different software programs with the inability to access other departments’ data, staff buckled down and found the perfect unifying tool to meet their needs: Tyler Technologies’ Enterprise Permitting & Licensing (powered by EnerGov™). Enterprise Permitting & Licensing is a powerful, flexible software solution for enterprise workflow and process regulation. Mesquite uses Enterprise Permitting & Licensing and its built-in, Esri®-based GIS functionality to handle everything from planning, permitting, and licensing to asset management and citizen requests.
“We needed to be able to see all permits in the city, regardless of what department needed the information,” said Mesquite’s Enterprise Permitting & Licensing System and Development Process Analyst Melissa Davis about breaking down the siloes caused by the many previous systems used in Enterprise Permitting and Licensing’s place.
About GIS, she added, “With the parcels that attach to each permit, we are also able to see where the permits are in our city.”
Mesquite used Enterprise Permitting & Licensing to consolidate the information previously spread out across systems and even experienced additional perks, like the convenience of the built-in GIS tools. Additionally, the city’s legacy system(s) were paper-based, so Enterprise Permitting & Licensing’s digital platform was a huge upgrade. The jobs of Mesquite’s staff became easier after implementation because they could search for permits, complaints, code cases, plans, etc. on a computer rather than in a filing cabinet. While staff was pleased with these results, they didn’t want to be the only ones reaping the rewards of the new system.
Southern Hospitality From the Government to Contractors, Citizens, and Peers
Mesquite implemented Enterprise Permitting & Licensing to house information from multiple departments in a single system that can be searched by anyone in the organization without them interrupting each other. This decision made the city’s processes and staff more efficient, but in true southern fashion, Davis said her hope is Enterprise Permitting & Licensing will enable them to provide the best customer service they can to their citizens. This hope led Mesquite to ensure the benefits Enterprise Permitting & Licensing provided weren’t limited to the city’s staff. Contractors and citizens have also felt the positive impact of the new software.
“Contractors [can] renew and upload their certifications on their own. Citizens are able to pull their own permits from their homes/offices. Citizens are able to look and see if their neighbors have permits, which cuts down on citizen complaints. Contractors and citizens are also able to check the status of their permits, pay for permits, and request inspections through the online portal,” said Davis.
However, Mesquite hasn’t lost sight of what its staff has been able to accomplish internally with the new software. The city is thrilled about the benefits it’s experienced and shared.
“Being able have five plus departments utilizing one software program and having that information ready at our fingertips has been a very beneficial impact on the city,” said Davis.
To extend Mesquite’s success beyond the city limits, Davis recommends that other organizations considering partnering with Tyler ask a lot of questions and be willing to mold existing processes to fit the new system, because the rewards will be worth the effort.
“Communication is key to any implementation, especially for software programs,” she said. “Make sure to communicate anything and everything to Tyler because you never know how one change can impact your processes.”
The City of Mesquite, Texas, is a great example of a successful local government and a proud Texas city. With southern charm and serious grit behind the efforts of the city’s staff, Mesquite will continue to thrive as a vibrant, connected community in a place where the state motto is simply “friendship”.