Municipal Website Redesign
Led the website redevelopment project for the Town of Midland, creating a more accessible and user-friendly digital experience that makes it easier for residents to find information, access services, and stay connected with their community.
Client:
The Town of Midland
Category:
CMS Web Design
My Role:
Website Content Coordinator
Project duration:
8 Months
Tools Used:
Govstack - CMS, Events & Forms, Google Analytics, Google search console, Ahrefs & Screaming frog, Microsoft Excel,Word, Teams & SharePoint, Canva,
Purpose: Putting Residents First: Midland's Website Reimagined
When I joined the Town of Midland, I saw an opportunity to create something meaningful - a digital experience that genuinely works for the people who depend on it every day. I started by listening. Through discovery workshops and one-on-one conversations with teams across the town, I built a clear picture of what residents needed, where they were underserved, and how the website could become a true extension of Midland's community care.
That vision drove every decision. I led the full migration to Govstack CMS, redesigned the information architecture around how residents naturally think and search, and transformed complex documents into accessible, easy-to-use web forms. Every navigation path, every call-to-action, every piece of content was shaped with one question in mind - does this make life easier for the people of Midland? The answer, by the end, was yes.
The Process Behind the Platform
It Started with Conversations, Not Wireframes
The process began with curiosity and collaboration - not assumptions. Every decision that followed was rooted in research, real conversations, and data that kept people at the centre.
Discovery & research
Ran workshop sessions and surveys to uncover what residents and staff truly needed
Conducted competitive research across municipal platforms to identify best practices and opportunities to go further
Held one-on-one sessions with every department to understand their services and most-used resident touchpoints.
Structure & architecture
Audited the existing sitemap and identified uneven, hard-to-navigate distribution
Collaborated with senior team leaders to restructure and refine it into a logical, resident-friendly architecture
Data-informed decisions
Analysed web analytics to shape design and content strategy
70% of users accessed the site on mobile which lead to responsiveness also a non-negotiable priority
50 seconds average reading time per page leading to content concise, scannable approach, and prominent call-to-action buttons.
Building & execution
Converted PDF documents into accessible, mobile-friendly web forms
Added a prominent homepage search bar for easy search
Created short URLs for easier access and handled all technical redirects during migration
Validation
Conducted a second round of surveys and internal testing before launch to ensure the site worked as well as it looked.
The Final Outcome
The launch & what was delivered
The website launched on time and on purpose - a fully responsive, optimised platform built around clarity, consistency, and the people using it every day.
Experience & design
Organised, consistent page layouts across the entire site
Prominent calls-to-action placed on every page
Custom layouts designed for micro sites
Web guidelines established for long-term consistency
Content & accessibility
PDF documents converted into accessible, mobile-friendly web forms
Content refined to be concise, scannable and action-oriented
Technical delivery
URL redirects handled to preserve page integrity post-migration
Site indexing configured for better search visibility
Custom breadcrumbs implemented for easier navigation
Short URLs created for quick and easy access
Quality & handover
Full end-to-end testing completed before and after launch
Training materials created and delivered to the internal team
Team equipped to confidently manage and maintain the platform independently.
“I worked with Sahera on the Town of Midland’s website migration project, where she played a steady and productive role supporting both the vendor‑led work and internal teams on a complex initiative. Sahera worked closely with staff across departments, helping translate vendor training and technical guidance into clear, usable documentation and content. She was responsive, approachable, and effective in supporting colleagues through content review, form setup, and testing, helping reduce friction as teams adapted to the new content and design framework. Sahera brought a collaborative mindset and a practical focus on making information easier for others to understand and apply. Her ability to bridge technical inputs and a tight project timeline with day‑to‑day staff needs was a valuable contribution to the project.”
Dana Clarke
ED, Digital Government & Innovation
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