“Good fences make good neighbors,” wrote Robert Frost in “Mending Wall,” summoning up generations of rural wisdom. But how about good websites?

It used to be that neighbors forged connections over apple pies or coffee at the local diner. But as bake sales give way to BlackBerrys, it’s less and less likely that residents of any given town know their neighbors’ names and faces, never mind sit down over coffee to hash out local issues.

That’s where i-Neighbors.org comes in. The six-year-old website aims to meet people where they are today—online, that is—and encourage them, in turn, to meet their neighbors and start forging stronger local connections. i-Neighbors and other hyperlocal sites are not the norm in cyberspace, but they are multiplying. Burlington, Vermont’s Front Porch Forum and private residential community sites built by companies like LifeAt offer neighborhood networking; larger sites like Yelp and Outside.in aggregate news, reviews and blogs at the neighborhood level. The Web excels at creating connections between people half a world away, but developers and researchers are starting to see evidence that it can also connect people to their neighbors next door.

i-Neighbors bills itself as “the place where neighbors come to meet, plan and stay informed,” and roughly 73,000 of them are doing just that. Indeed, it may be the handiest gathering place and information source for neighborhoods that no longer look like Mayberry. It won’t replace the local coffee shop or daily newspaper—people still have a need for town-wide news and physical meeting places—but it can help connect the increasing number of neighbors who live steps away from each other, but whose lives somehow never manage to intersect.

Anyone can create an account on i-Neighbors for free and either join an existing neighborhood group or start a new one. i-Neighbors lets users define the neighborhoods themselves by entering a short description and marking the neighborhood on a map. Once launched, the neighborhood platform works and feels a lot like other social media sites. Users can create a profile and upload a photo, there are message boards and email lists, places to add photos, links and files, local reviews and other features like a neighborhood calendar and directory. Want to find a running partner? Simple: post a message to the list. Need a recommendation for a plumber or a good new restaurant? Check out the reviews and then add your own. Curious what your neighbors think of your new garden gnomes? Start a poll.

But according to founder Keith Hampton, Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication, the real value of i-Neighbors might not emerge until there’s a local problem. “Having networks in place is really important,” Hampton says, “You need neighbors in an emergency.” Some communities are using i-Neighbors to prevent crime or help with medical emergencies or other problems (like Wasilla, Alaska’s Community Patrol or Newfane, New York’s Countryside Community Neighborhood Watch program), but it’s just as helpful in resolving more mundane community issues, like leash laws or street sign placement. It’s much easier to bring neighbors together to discuss, resolve and act on an issue if they’ve already swapped recipes and developed a sense of common ground than if you start from scratch when the controversy hits.

The success of an online neighborhood community depends on a number of factors. i-Neighbors recommends keeping the neighborhood size to fewer than 500 households, and the site is more effective in areas with clear geographic boundaries. Internet access is of course a must, though i-Neighbors is now available as a mobile phone app as well. Interestingly, says Hampton, i-Neighbors doesn’t always work best in more affluent areas. He has seen major successes in typical middle class, suburban cul-de-sacs, and also in extremely disadvantaged inner-city neighborhoods where other communication channels are limited and existing social cohesion is frayed.

As easy as it is to click your way into i-Neighbors, the most important ingredients in a thriving online (and offline) community are old-fashioned hard work and organizing. “If you build it, they will come” doesn’t apply here; anyone starting an i-Neighbors group will need to advertise the site, work to engage members, and set ground rules for effective participation. i-Neighbors provides a poster template that users can print and hang around the neighborhood or bring door to door, but Hampton says the most successful groups usually have a committed individual or local organization behind them—someone who is concerned about a neighborhood issue, recognizes the value of the technology, and can spread the word and get others to start using the site.

Whether you’re ready to tackle a local legislative initiative or you just want to meet the folks across the picket fence, Hampton says the single most important thing is to just get started. After all, he says, “It only takes one person.” Start a site, tell a few friends, and soon you’ll have a few more. You may be surprised to find how much more you have in common than just a street address.