Boston IT Chief Says City Asset Digitization Exceeded Deadline, Citywide Audit Pending

BOSTON — April 2, 2024 — Boston's Department of Innovation and Technology told city councilors it has exceeded a key digitization deadline, completing work on roughly 300,000 right-of-way assets ahead of a June 2024 target. Chief Information Officer Santiago Garces and DoIT Chief of Staff Kerry Jordan testified before the City Council's Committee on City Services and Innovation Technology on April 2, reporting that the Boston Transportation Department is now using Cartograph, a digital work order and asset management system, to track street signs, poles, and 16 other asset types in real time. A citywide IT audit conducted with consulting firm Plante Moran — covering 14 technology groups, 154 products, and 107 service types across city departments and quasi-governmental agencies — remains unfinished but is expected to be published within months. Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata, the docket's sponsor, pressed for action on what the What Works Cities gold assessment identified as unmet standards, including the absence of a public-facing citywide data policy. Council President Ruthzee Louijeune and Councilor Sharon Durkan tied the tech gaps directly to the city's inability to place property liens since at least 2016, a failure attributed to city databases that do not communicate with each other. A replacement for the 311 constituent management system is expected to be selected this summer, with an 18-month rollout targeting full operation by 2026.