It’s meant to be an online space where neighbours can be neighbours, lending a hand or offering supplies.

That’s the aim of the Village App, the digital platform that has partnered with the County of St. Paul as announced on March 25.

The app looks to improve connections and build community, especially for newcomers, but also be a one-stop shop with access to a variety of services in the St. Paul area that residents might not know about.

“The Village App is essentially an easy way to just ask for help where you’re not going to get judged,” Ashley Stone, CEO of Village App, told Lakeland Connect. 

“It’s just a bulletin board for saying I need this, or I have this, or this is what’s happening in our community.” 

Starting in 2021, as Stone’s family grew and she became closer with her neighbours, she said there was never a lack of people who wanted to help, but there was a lack of getting that message out to the right people at the right time.

The app has created some buzz. It’s been in several top 100 startup competitions and engaged with municipalities.

Users would create an account with as much or as little personal information as they would like to divulge. However, to register you need to provide a postal code to ensure the “hyper-local” aspect.

Discussions between the County and the Stone have been going on for about a year before the partnership went live last week.

The County secured designation under the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program’s Rural Renewal Stream, to address labour demands and foster growth by welcoming newcomers.

Fellow community partners, such as St. Paul/Elk Point Economic Development Alliance (STEP) and Portage College, are part of the push to get the app here locally.

Without comment sections or extra noise, it’s meant to be as simple as sending a text message, and a resource for local information and to help others.

“It’s not just another platform that’s going to suck your time. This is meant to build relationships and community, and really just create that positive community that I think we all need and want, but are too afraid to attempt,” said Stone. 

The app can be found here. https://www.thevillageapp.co/home