Move at the Speed of Trust

Fast, lean, ethical civic technology for communities that deserve better.

From rapid research packages and policy toolkits to public accountability dashboards and community organizing databases — built fast, built to last, and built for the people who need them most.

Book Free 15-Min Consult

Why Civic Tech Fails

Too Slow

Most contractors take months. You get working prototypes in days.

Too Expensive

Big consulting firms charge enterprise prices. You get affordable mid-market efficiency.

Too Generic

Off-the-shelf tools ignore community context. You get custom solutions built with real user input.

13 Years Building Systems That Matter

Nikki Ricks headshot

I bridge worlds most consultants can't. With 5 years as a full-stack engineer (AWS, TypeScript, platform infrastructure), 4 years in civic service as an ADA Architectural Surveyor, and 4 years coaching startups, I bring technical depth AND community trust.

Tech 5 years Financial, EdTech, Cannabis platforms
Startup Consulting 4 years Startup consulting & angel investing
Architecture 4 years City government and private auditing for ADA compliance. GIS Certified.

Why Work With Me

  • Think like an entrepreneur, move at the speed of trust
  • Talk to unhoused neighbors and city councilors with equal fluency
  • Technical background + urban planning mindset + advocacy experience
  • Network spans academia, activism, technology, and legal

Community Education

Multnomah County Library — North

Your Data, Your Rights

A public workshop on downloading and deleting your personal data — practical tools and steps for taking back control from platforms.

Multnomah County Library — Albina · with Tech Workers Coalition

Activist Digital Security

Co-presented the essential digital security checklist for activists — covering secure communications, device hygiene, and protecting yourself and your community online.

Four Ways to Work Together

Rapid Prototype Sprint

1 - 3 days $3,000 - $7,000

Perfect for: Proof-of-concepts, grant applications, stakeholder demos

Deliverables:

  • Working prototype (database + frontend)
  • GitHub repository with documentation
  • 1-hour technical handoff session
Start Here

Membership Portal

10 - 14 days $7,000 - $20,000

Perfect for: Community organizations, small city departments

Deliverables:

  • Everything in Tier 1
  • User authentication & membership system
  • Admin dashboard for content management
  • Basic deployment guide
Build Your Portal

Full Community Engagement Solution

60 days $20,000 - $55,000

Perfect for: City-wide initiatives, compliance-driven projects

Deliverables:

  • Everything in Tier 2
  • Community testing with real users (3-5 sessions)
  • Accessibility audit & compliance report
  • Stakeholder feedback integration
  • Staff training (2 sessions)
  • 30-day post-launch support
Let's Transform Engagement

Hourly Coworker

As needed Hourly rate

Perfect for: Teams that need an extra technical hand without a long-term contract

What you get:

  • Embedded technical collaborator on your team
  • Flexible hours — scale up or down as needed
  • No retainer, no long-term commitment
Let's Talk Hours

Values-based pricing available for BIPOC-led organizations and grassroots nonprofits.

Proof: Real Tools for Real Organizing

I build research packages, public accountability dashboards, community organizing databases, and policy-facing deliverables — and I maintain the technical platforms that run civic participation at scale. The work spans rapid turnarounds for city councilor staff, multi-format advocacy toolkits for coalitions, open-source platform upgrades, and tools that make power structures legible to the people most affected by them.

Most Impactful

Welcome Home: Data Center Research & Advocacy Toolkit

Challenge:

Welcome Home Coalition needed to make a data-backed case that data center expansion is a housing issue — but had no centralized research, no public records, and no materials ready for politicians or the press.

Solution:

Built a complete advocacy research package: data center inventory, public records requests across Hillsboro, Beaverton, and Forest Grove, utility load growth analysis, power mapping, taxation research, infographics, a policy 1-pager with supporting calculations, an FAQ, and politician-ready talking points.

Impact:

Delivered a polished, multi-format toolkit enabling Welcome Home to bring credible data-driven arguments to elected officials and the public.

Public Records Data Research Policy Brief Power Mapping

Decidim Bot Traffic Mitigation

Challenge:

Multiple civic participation platforms built on Decidim (a Rails-based open-source tool for citizen engagement) were being hit with bot traffic, undermining the integrity of community input.

Solution:

Upgraded multiple Decidim forks to versions with improved bot protections, navigating the complexity of maintaining customizations across each fork through the upgrade process.

Impact:

Restored trust in the participation data collected by the platforms and kept community voices from being drowned out by automated submissions.

Ruby on Rails Decidim Open Source

Community Board for Police Accountability Dashboard

Challenge:

Portland's new CBPA needed accessible public data on PPB accountability — officer-involved shootings, use of force, discipline rates, and racial disparities — in one place.

Solution:

Built a public data dashboard surfacing PPB accountability data alongside CBPA legal rights and data request powers under Portland City Code.

Impact:

Gives community members and board members a clear picture of police accountability in Portland. Live at nikkiricks.dev/civics/cbpa

Public Data SVG Charts Portland City Code Zine

Vernon Landlord Database

Challenge:

Community organizers had no way to track patterns across landlord-owned properties—who's violating codes, who's displacing tenants, who's consolidating ownership.

Solution:

Built searchable database linking landlord entities to properties, violations, and tenant complaints. Made power structures visible through data.

Impact:

Gave organizers the evidence they needed for direct action and policy advocacy. Made displacement patterns undeniable. Live at vernon-landlords.netlify.app

PostgreSQL React Public Records API

PCRI Housing Analysis Dashboard

Challenge:

City councilor staff needed data visualization to understand PCRI housing displacement patterns in Portland, but had no time for lengthy development cycles.

Solution:

Built interactive data dashboard visualizing housing history, displacement trends, and community impact. Delivered in less than 24 hours.

Impact:

City councilor staff got immediate access to data-driven insights for policy decisions. Live at pcri-vernon-analysis.surge.sh

React Data Viz 24hr Build

Vernon Street Tree Bot

Challenge:

Residents needed accessible guidance on caring for neighborhood trees but lacked direct access to Portland's Street Tree Inventory and native plant databases.

Solution:

Built digital urban forestry assistant connecting residents to city data, providing property-specific tree identification, health assessments, and personalized native planting recommendations.

Impact:

Empowered homeowners with expert tree care guidance and climate-resilient planting options. Bridged gap between residents and urban forestry professionals.

Street Tree API Portland Plant List Chatbot

From First Call to Launch

1

Free 15-Min Consultation

We talk about your challenge. I share similar examples. No pressure.

2

Proposal (48 Hours)

Custom scope, timeline, and pricing. Clear deliverables.

3

Kickoff + $1k Deposit

We align on goals, users, and success metrics.

4

Build Sprint

Rapid prototyping with check-ins. You see progress in days, not months.

5

Community Testing (Tier 3 only)

Feedback implemented from real people to get impactful improvements.

6

Handoff + Training

Documentation, GitHub access, staff training. You own everything.

7

Support

30-day post-launch for Tier 3. Maintenance retainers available ($1,500-$3k/month).

Who This Is For

Ideal Client Profiles

  • City departments launching civic engagement initiatives
  • County agencies modernizing community input processes
  • Nonprofits with civic tech grants who need technical execution
  • Progressive government contractors needing community engagement depth
  • Organizations facing compliance lawsuits (ADA, WCAG, accessibility)

NOT For

  • Agencies wanting surveillance tools
  • Projects prioritizing optics over outcomes
  • Organizations unwilling to involve actual community members

Questions I Get Asked

Why so fast?

Because I don't have enterprise overhead. Solo consulting means I build, not manage. And civic work is urgent—communities can't wait for 6-month procurement cycles.

What if we need ongoing support?

Maintenance retainers start at $1,500/month. Or train your team to own it—I document everything for that reason.

Do you work outside Portland?

Yes. Remote-first, with on-site options if you cover travel, lodging, and food.

What about values-based pricing?

BIPOC-led organizations get 20% off. Grassroots nonprofits get sliding scale. Corporate civic projects pay premium rates. It's about alignment, not just money.

What's your stack?

AWS, TypeScript, whatever's best for your context. I'm tool-agnostic but opinionated about maintainability.

How I Work

Civic technology only works if it works for the people most affected. That means I don't take contracts that surveil, exclude, or extract from communities — no matter the client or budget.

I offer values-based pricing for BIPOC-led organizations and grassroots nonprofits. If you're doing the work and can't afford market rate, let's talk.

I'm transparent about what I build and who owns it. All code is documented. Clients get their repositories, their data, and full access — no vendor lock-in, no dependency on me to keep the lights on.

I prioritize projects where the technology serves people who are under-resourced, over-policed, displaced, or otherwise left out of the civic systems that govern their lives.

No Lock-In

You own your code, your data, and your infrastructure.

Values-Based Pricing

Sliding scale for organizations doing justice work without enterprise budgets.

Hard Limits

No surveillance tech, no tools that criminalize poverty, no extractive contracts.

Community First

Technology decisions are made with communities, not for them.

Let's Build Something That Works

No sales pressure. No corporate doublespeak. Just a 15-minute conversation about whether this is a good fit.

Book Your Free Consultation

Prefer email? → nrcivics@proton.me