Lewisboro gets the message: Text the town without an app

By LOGAN KREISBERG

The Lewisboro Town Board approved a resolution Monday to institute TextMyGov, a messaging platform that allows for two-way SMS communication between residents and the town. 

Town Supervisor Tony Gonçalves said TextMyGov is a “user friendly” way for residents to directly interact with town government, allowing them to report issues such as potholes, receive notices about road closures and community events, ask questions by text message and be directed to the appropriate department without downloading a separate app. 

The platform can additionally be used by the town to relay important information to the community including public events and severe weather. 

Although headquartered in Utah, TextMyGov serves municipalities in all 50 states and is already in use in nearby Rye, and several other municipalities in New York.

 The program allows towns to send and receive information through text messaging without requiring residents to download an app.

“This would be a way we could get pertinent information out to our residents,” said Kerri Wolfe, the town’s chief of staff benefits administrator who helped bring TextMyGov to the town. “Then they would have the ability to reach out to us too with concerns.”

Lewisboro will enter a three-year contract with TextMyGov, with the town paying $7,000 annually for the services. The town will purchase the most standard version of the product, which will allow unlimited users and departments to utilize the platform. 

Gonçalves said a TextMyGov representative met with the police, parks and recreation, town clerk and finance departments before the board approved the agreement, and each supported adopting the platform. Those departments will use the service to communicate with residents, who can choose which notifications they receive by subscribing to specific categories.

The board authorized the town comptroller to execute the agreement. Wolfe said officials expect implementation to begin immediately after the contract is signed, with the program rolling out over the next several weeks and available to residents before the end of the summer. TextMyGov will be fully instituted by early 2027, and payments will begin Feb. 1. 

Of the 10 business items the board approved at the July 13 Town Board meeting, the adoption of TextMyGov is likely to have the most direct impact on residents. Board members said they plan to introduce the platform at upcoming town events to help residents learn about and access the service.

“It’s not going to replace picking up the phone and calling us when we’re all here, but it could help with someone finding out something quickly,” Wolfe said.