JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Mayor Donna Deegan unveiled a new data tracking website aimed at helping drive public policy and business development Tuesday.
The State of Jax website was created in partnership with the city and a coalition of more than a dozen businesses, universities and organizations.
The tool allows users to compare outcomes on data points like life expectancy, food stamp dependence rates or education level for example, by neighborhood, zip code or council district.
The City’s Chief of Analytics, Parvez Ahmed, can also see how those results compare to the city, state and national average, as well as how Jax compares to 13 peer cities.
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“College Park, which is west of Springfield, just South of UF Health. If that neighborhood was a country of its own, it would be ranked 150th and if Mandarin would have been a country of its own, life expectancy would be number one in the world. So, within the same city, we have that level of disparity,” said Ahmed.
Mayor Deegan compared the new data tracking tool to sharpening an axe before taking on the task of cutting down a tree.
She argued that by having solid data to analyze and track over time, policy decisions can be made more effectively.
“Because data-driven storytelling is more than charts and graphs. It’s how we uncover the real experiences of our residents here in Jacksonville, where they’re thriving, where they’re struggling and where we must do better,” said Deegan.
You can check out the new site https://stateofjax.org/.
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