Government, News

Morgantown city records will soon be available online

MORGANTOWN — Morgantown City Clerk Linda Tucker said the city is working with Las Vegas-based MuniMetriX Systems Corp. to make city records available online.
City documents dating from 1988 to 2013, including council journals, deeds and agreements, election records, ordinances and resolutions can now be accessed through the “Digital Archives” link on the city’s website, morgantownwv.gov.
Clicking that link takes you to ImageSilo.com, which breaks the documents down by type and includes a searchable database.
“We’re still working on some documents, but this company is going to help get those up in the near future,” Tucker said of records falling between 2013 and the present. “This is something that I’ve really wanted to get done for a while and I’m kind of excited about it.”
She explained that having quick access to a searchable database of records will make work more efficient for city employees and provide better access to the public.
The city paid a one-time cost to upload the documents plus $39.99 monthly going forward.
Tucker said that getting records online is only part of the city’s plans for document preservation, explaining that the goal is to standardize how each department creates and stores its records.
Additionally, Tucker said, she is working with personnel in the city’s engineering department to explore the creation of a records storage space in the basement of city hall.
Along with a fireproof vault near the clerk’s office, copies of city records are kept at the Morgantown Public Library as well as the WVU’s West Virginia & Regional History Center.
Tucker said Communications Director Andrew Stacy was instrumental in getting the process started.
“We’ve wanted to do this for years and years,” she said. “I think it’s going to make things a lot easier for everyone.”