Municipality of Port Hope Launches New Community Engagement Platform

Pete Fisher
2 days ago
• Categories: Local

The Municipality of Port Hope is pleased to announce the launch of Engage Port Hope, a new online platform designed to enhance communication and promote meaningful engagement with the community.

Engage Port Hope replaces the former ‘My Port Hope’ site and has been fully rebranded and redeveloped in partnership with a new vendor. The platform offers a more user-friendly and interactive experience, with tools that make it easier for residents to share feedback and participate in local decision-making.

Key features include:

• Social Maps – An interactive tool for collecting and analyzing place-based feedback, helping visualize community insights to support planning and decision making.

• Story Sharing – A space for residents to contribute stories, ideas, and experiences, with the option to comment and vote on submissions.

• Budget Engagement – A dynamic feature that allows residents to provide input on municipal spending priorities during the annual budget process, which takes place at the end of the year.

• Ideation – A virtual “post-it note” board for sharing and refining ideas, supporting collaboration and creativity.

“We’re pleased to launch the Engage Port Hope platform—our new tool to support digital community engagement,” said Brian Gilmer, Director of Corporate Services. “This is a positive step in how we connect with residents and the broader community. I’d like to thank the Communications team for their hard work and commitment to this initiative.”

Since the original ‘My Port Hope’ site was introduced in 2017, municipal staff have worked to create meaningful ways for residents to share their input on local matters.

Feedback gathered through the platform has played a key role in shaping decisions made by Council and staff.

In 2024, staff conducted a comprehensive review of the original platform, analyzing usage data, community feedback, vendor support, and input from Council. The review identified opportunities to expand engagement options, improve data analysis, and enhance the user experience. Based on these findings, a new vendor was selected to deliver these improvements—at no additional cost to the Municipality.

Engage Port Hope reflects the Municipality’s continued commitment to inclusive, transparent, and accessible engagement. Residents are invited to explore the new platform, share their ideas, and help shape the future of Port Hope.

For more information and to get involved, visit engage.porthope.ca