2015 Digital Cities: Winners Experiment with Forward-Thinking Tech Projects

The 2015 Digital Cities Survey results are in. Dozens of cities were selected by a judging panel at the Center for Digital Government as the most strategic, efficient and innovative guardians of public-sector tech in the nation. The top-ranked cities will receive an award on Nov. 5 at the annual National League of Cities conference in recognition of their achievements.

The first place winners in four population categories are Philadelphia (PA); Alexandria (VA); Avondale (AZ); and Shawnee (KS). Judges evaluated the survey submissions of each city by considering four elements: citizen engagement, policy, operations, and technology and data. Given this common set of criteria, it's natural that the winners should have some qualities in common, but an unanticipated pattern arose among the winners: The best digital cities have developed a mature infrastructure that affords city leaders a chance to experiment with forward-thinking technology projects that are molded in the image of the average citizen's lifestyle.