The City of Mountlake Terrace has recently jumped into using social media as a way to communicate with residents.

The City’s Facebook Page launched a couple of weeks ago and has over 100 fans and is growing. Fans will receive updates on regular happenings in the city such as projects, upcoming meetings, special events, programs and services as well as emergency information such as weather and road closures and other timely information. In addition to the main city Facebook account, the Mountlake Terrace Recreation and Parks Department has an active Facebook account for recreation program information and updates.

“One of the City Council goals is a comprehensive outreach plan that fosters communication, informs and educates the public, increases the awareness of city programs, and creates transparency in government,” said Community Relations Director Virginia Olsen. “Social Media has emerged as one of the most popular forms of communication in the United States and the city plans to utilize it as another avenue to reach out and connect with our citizens and the community at large.”

On the heels of launching a Facebook page, the City of Mountlake Terrace has added Twitter as a means to enhance the city’s outreach and communication.

“With over 350 million tweets sent per day, Twitter has become a key communication tool in our society,” said City Clerk/Community Relations Director Virginia Olsen. “We will utilize Twitter to supplement our wide array of communication tools including our website, Cable Channel 21, Facebook, City Happenings newsletter, City Manager weekly updates, and email subscription list, to name a few. It’s another way to ‘get the word out’ to increase transparency and strengthen the bond between City Hall and our community.”

You can find the City of Mountlake Terrace on Facebook here and on Twitter at @CityofMLT.