Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics

“Our job in city government is to be urban mechanics – to fix the basics that make our neighborhoods work. But the truth is, today, our residents, our partners, ourselves —we are all urban mechanics.” -Mayor Thomas M. Menino



The Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics is an approach to civic innovation focused on delivering transformative City services to Boston's residents.

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  • Adopt a Hydrant (200)

    Adopt a Hydrant Now Launched!

    This winter, the New Urban Mechanics are launching the volunteer-based Adopt-A-Hydrant program, a first-of-its-kind effort. Residents can volunteer to keep hydrants in their neighborhood accessible to firefighters after snowstorms. The app was developed by Erik Michaels-Ober, a Code for America fellow who served with the City in 2011.

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    Adopt A Hydrant »

  • POY Logo

    New Urban Mechanics Co-Chairs Win Person of the Year Award

    The co‐chairs of a unique IT agency are changing the way citizens interact with cities. Their first initiative, Citizens Connect, is a maintenance‐request app that has been downloaded more than 16,000 times and replicated in more than 20 countries since its 2009 launch. Today, the duo is working with small development firms, nonprofits and colleges, and is managing almost 20 new projects that address needs in infrastructure, education and what they call “participatory urbanism.”

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  • Code for America (75)

    2011 Partnership with Code for America

    The Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics partnered for the 2011 year with Code for America, a start-up non-profit focusing on municipal innovation, to pilot a new channel to reach youth where they already spend a significant amount of time: online and cell phones. Code for America and the City designed for the 2012 school year a suite of web and mobile phone applications stimulating the academic curiosity of students while making it easier for parents and educators to connect students with youth opportunities.

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