City of Cotati
Sonoma County, California
________________________________________________________________
201 W. Sierra Ave, Cotati, CA 94931 | (707) 792-4600 | www.cotaticity.gov | @cityofcotati
SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION
CivicPlus – Combined Administrative, Public Communication, Website, and Security Services Department: City Manager
Vendor: CivicPlus
Contract/Services: NextRequest, CivicReady, Website Redesign Services, CotatiCity.org Domain Hosting, Website Hosting and Security, and SSL Management
Annual Cost: $27,742
Fiscal Year: 2026/27
PURPOSE
The City of Cotati is requesting approval to continue its existing services with CivicPlus through an annual renewal for Fiscal Year 2026/27. CivicPlus currently provides several integrated services that support the City's public records administration, emergency communications, public-facing website, domain management, website hosting and security, and SSL management.
SOLE SOURCE POLICY CRITERIA
The City's Purchasing Policy provides an exemption from competitive bidding for commodities and services that can only be obtained from one vendor. The policy identifies sole source purchases that may include proprietary items sold directly from the manufacturer, items with only one authorized distributor in the area, or a particular product that has been demonstrated to be the only product acceptable for the City's needs.
The policy further provides that a sole source may exist when equipment, supplies, or materials are required to be compatible with existing equipment or to perform a complex or unique function.
The City's continued use of CivicPlus meets the City's sole source criteria based upon the proprietary nature of the existing CivicPlus platforms and the need for compatibility and continuity with the City's existing CivicPlus systems, data, configurations, workflows, and public-facing services.
SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION
CivicPlus is the City's existing provider for the above services, which operate as an integrated set of platforms and services supporting the City's administrative and public-facing technology needs. The City has an existing investment in the CivicPlus platform, including established accounts, configurations, data, website infrastructure, domain management, security controls, and staff workflows. Continuing with CivicPlus allows the City to maintain compatibility with these existing systems and avoid disruption to services currently relied upon by City staff and the public.
Docusign Envelope ID: 026763E0-39B5-85A5-81AE-6672D18F21CA Sole Source Justification – CivicPlus
August 19, 2026
2 In particular, the following services require continuity with the City's existing CivicPlus environment:
NextRequest: The City utilizes NextRequest to receive, track, assign, manage, and respond to public records requests. The system contains established workflows, user accounts, configurations, and records that are currently used by City staff. CivicReady: The City utilizes CivicReady as its emergency mass notification platform.
Continuation of the existing platform maintains established notification processes, system configurations, user access, and community communication capabilities.
Continuation with CivicPlus is necessary to maintain operational continuity and avoid the disruption, duplication of costs, and implementation requirements associated with replacing multiple existing services. Changing providers would require the City to identify and procure replacement systems, migrate data and configurations, establish new integrations and accounts, train staff on replacement systems, and transition into public-facing services.
Replacing these services would require the City to undertake additional work related to:
Identification and evaluation of replacement vendors and platforms; Procurement and contract implementation;
Data migration and configuration;
Establishment of new user accounts, administrative processes, and security controls; Staff training and transition to new systems;
Website and domain transition activities;
Testing and implementation of replacement emergency notification and public records systems; and
Potential duplication of costs during the transition period.
Additionally, the proposed annual renewal provides the City with flexibility to evaluate the services on an annual basis. The agreement is subject to automatic renewal unless the City provides at least 60 days' notice prior to the renewal date. Future renewal is also subject to the availability and appropriation of funds.
COMPATIBILITY AND UNIQUE FUNCTION
The City's determination that CivicPlus qualifies as a sole source is based primarily on compatibility with the City's existing CivicPlus environment and the integrated nature of the services being renewed.
The City's requirements are not limited to obtaining generic website hosting, public records software, or mass notification services. The City requires continued operation of its existing configured systems and the ability to maintain established data, workflows, user access, website infrastructure, and security functions.
Docusign Envelope ID: 026763E0-39B5-85A5-81AE-6672D18F21CA Sole Source Justification – CivicPlus
August 19, 2026
3 Replacing one or more components with unrelated systems would require significant changes to the City's existing environment and could result in the loss of functionality, additional implementation costs, and operational disruption.
Accordingly, CivicPlus is the only vendor currently capable of providing the requested services within the City's existing CivicPlus environment and without requiring the City to replace and transition the existing integrated systems.
COST AND FINANCIAL CONSIDERATION
The proposed annual cost for Fiscal Year 2026/27 is $27,742. The agreement provides for annual fee increases of no more than five percent (5%) in subsequent years. Based on the current annual cost, a maximum five percent increase would result in an annual cost of approximately $29,130 for a subsequent fiscal year.
The proposed renewal is therefore considered to be in the City's best interest when considering the cost of the services, the City's existing investment in the CivicPlus platform, and the operational costs and risks associated with transitioning to replacement systems.
DETERMINATION
Based on the factors identified above, City staff have determined that CivicPlus is the appropriate provider for continuation of the City's existing integrated services. Based on the City's Purchasing Policy and the information provided above, the CivicPlus renewal should be treated as a sole source purchase because the services are proprietary and are required to maintain compatibility and continuity with the CivicPlus systems and infrastructure.
A competitive procurement process for these services is not recommended at this time because changing providers would result in significant administrative and operational impacts associated with replacing and transitioning the City's existing systems.
The proposed sole source procurement is limited to the continuation of the identified CivicPlus services and remains subject to applicable City purchasing requirements, annual budget appropriations, and the terms of the CivicPlus agreement.
Purchasing Department Head: Angela Courter __________________________________ Director of Administrative Services
Approved By: Damien O’Bid___________________________________ City Manager
Docusign Envelope ID: 026763E0-39B5-85A5-81AE-6672D18F21CA Certificate Of Completion
Envelope Id: 026763E0-39B5-85A5-81AE-6672D18F21CA Status: Completed Subject: Complete with Docusign: Sole Source Justification Memo - CivicPlus.pdf Source Envelope:
Document Pages: 3 Signatures: 2 Envelope Originator:
Certificate Pages: 2 Initials: 0 Angela Courter
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IP Address: 71.6.94.254
Record Tracking
Status: Original
8/20/2026 3:24:14 PM
Holder: Angela Courter
[email protected]
Location: DocuSign
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Signer Events Signature Timestamp
Angela Courter
[email protected]
Director of Administrative Services
City of Cotati
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Sent: 8/20/2026 3:25:24 PM
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Signed: 8/20/2026 3:25:38 PM
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Damien O'Bid
[email protected]
City Manager
City of Cotati
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Sent: 8/20/2026 3:25:39 PM
Viewed: 8/21/2026 12:56:29 PM
Signed: 8/21/2026 12:56:37 PM
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Not Offered via Docusign
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