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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Awarding Contract for Parking Enforcement Hardware and Software RESOLUTION NO.20-183 RESOLUTION AWARDING CONTRACT WITH UNITED PUBLIC SAFETY FOR PARKING ENFORCEMENT HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE FOR THE CITY OF AMES,IOWA WHEREAS,for over seven years the Police Department's Parking Division has operated with six handheld electronic ticket writers; and, WHEREAS,those devices utilize software from Duncan Technology and interface with the City's financial systems through an independent program developed by Information Technology staff, and, WHEREAS, Duncan Technology officially discontinued support of the ticket writers on July 1, 2019; and, WHEREAS, due to the ticket writers no longer being covered by contract,repairs have been on a time and materials basis; and, WHEREAS,the support from Duncan Technology has become unreliable,the new generation of ticket writers would not operate on the existing software, and advancements in technology would provide new solutions to existing operational problems (like digital chalking, graduated fine structures, and interfaces with ParkMobile); and, WHEREAS, staff has determined that it was in the best interest to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP)to completely replace the existing system with up-to-date, fully functional, and integrated parking enforcement and information management system; and, WHEREAS,an RFP was issued in July 2019 and ten responses were received from various vendors; and, WHEREAS,a review team consisting of two Parking Enforcement staff,two Police Administration staff, an IT representative, and a Purchasing representative reviewed all the responses; and, WHEREAS, four proposals were eliminated as unresponsive or unable to meet the core requirements and the remaining five were interviewed by the team including demonstrations of the equipment and software; and, WHEREAS,following the interviews and testing,two finalists were identified and references were checked and as part of the process,Parking Enforcement staff members had an opportunity to work with test ticket writing devices and the supporting software from each vendor; and, WHEREAS, the team ultimately determined that the program and equipment offered by United Public Safety(UPsafety) should be the recommended company for purchase; and, WHEREAS,Upsafety's program is a cloud-based system that offers the best ticket writers with their supporting software and back-end software that supports a wider range of functions; and, WHEREAS,the back-end software supports citation tracking,appeals,complaints,towing records, citation payment, system generated delinquency letters, report writing, permit management, and other parking related functions; and, WHEREAS,Upsafety's offer is based on a service fee model that is different than how Parking has operated in the past and UPSafety proposes the system cost be primarily funded through a$3.00 per citation convenience fee paid by violators when they pay a citation on-line through Upsafety's ticket payment portal; and, WHEREAS, it is important to emphasize that citations that are paid by mail or in-person do not carry the $3.00 fee or generate City expense; and WHEREAS, the City would also pay the credit card processing fee associated with the on-line payment that would be 2.9%of the citation amount plus .25 cents per citation; and, WHEREAS, the City already pays a similar processing fee for citations paid on-line through C1ick2Gov so that does not represent a new expense; and, WHEREAS, on-line payments are made through Upsafety's managed web portal, not through C1ick2Gov, and because the core of Upsafety's business model relies on on-line citation payments, the resources dedicated to system security impressed the review team; and, WHEREAS,the new ticket writers maintain a live connection with the cloud database allowing the officer in the field to access accurate, real-time records so they will know when a graduated fine is appropriate,when a vehicle has been cited before,or when an area has been granted free parking for a period of time; and, WHEREAS,the new system also includes an integrated on-line permit management module that will allow the City to manage the permit parking in all City lots; and, WHEREAS,this will allow citizens the option to purchase available permits on-line without having to come to City Hall;however, on-line permit sales will be subject to the convenience fee. NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Ames,Iowa,that the contract for the parking enforcement hardware and software with United Public Safety of Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, is hereby approved. ADOPTED THIS 14th day of April,2020. r Diane R. Voss, City Clerk John A. Haila,Mayor Introduced by: Gartin Seconded by: Betcher Voting aye: Beatty-Hansen,Betcher, Corrieri, Gartin,Junck,Martin Voting nay: None Absent: None Resolution declared adopted and signed by the Mayor this 14`h day of April, 2020.