TO:
VIA:
FROM:
DATE:
Placentia City Council
CITY COUNCIL
CITY ADMINISTRATOR
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
FEBRUARY 1, 2022
AGENDA REPORT
SUBJECT: PURCHASE OF PERMIT TRACKING/LAND MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
SUBSCRIPTION AND INTEGRATION
FISCAL
IMPACT: EXPENSE:
BUDGET:
SUMMARY:
$251,083.32 SOFTWARE SUBSCRIPTION PURCHASE AND
IMPLEMENTATION (5 -YEAR SUBSCRIPTION)
FISCAL YEARS 2022-2024 (1-3 YEAR SUBSCRIPTIONS)
$100,000.00 SB 2 PLANNING GRANT PROGRAM (506115-6840)
$ 25,724.67 TECHNOLOGY FUND (756201-6840)
FISCAL YEAR 2025 (4T" YEAR SUBSCRIPTION)
$ 44,020.87 TECHNOLOGY FUND (756201-6840)
FISCAL YEAR 2026 (5T" YEAR SUBSCRIPTION)
$ 45,121.38 TECHNOLOGY FUND (756201-6840)
The 2017 Legislative Housing Package ("Package") included 15 bills initiating new regulations and providing new financial resources aimed at addressing California's housing crisis. The Package provided statewide initiatives and regulations to streamline the approval process for housing development, including the creation of funding for housing. Senate Bill No. 2 (SB 2) imposed a fee upon the recordation of real estate documents to provide funding to support affordable housing. The funds from the first year of the fees would be allocated to local governments via planning grants intended to help jurisdictions accelerate and facilitate housing production. Small sized jurisdictions such as Placentia applied and successfully secured $160,000 for housing planning grants. Staff successfully proposed and allocated the full $160,000 to fund two (2) projects: 1) permit tracking/land management software and 2) an update to the City's Housing Element. The grant will be used to fund a portion or all of these projects at the discretion of the City as long as they result in encouraging housing production.
In 2018, the Department embarked on a path to evaluate and acquire tracking/permitting software that will assist in streamlining permitting, planning/zoning inquires, inspections, code enforcement, and increase efficiency and enhance customer service for residents, business owners, and stakeholders. A survey was conducted by City staff of Orange County municipalities
1.g.
Feb. 1, 2022
City Council Agenda
February 1, 2022
to determine the number of cities utilizing permit tracking/land management software and identify the software type used for their daily operations. After a thorough multi -departmental review, Staff is recommending the acquisition of the SmartGov platform provided by Dude Solutions.
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the City Council take the following actions:
1. Approve a Master Subscription Agreement with Dude Solutions, Inc. ("DSI"), for permit tracking/land management software and implementation in an amount not -to -exceed $251,084; and
2. Authorize the City Administrator and/or his designee to execute all necessary documents, in a form approved by the City Attorney.
DISCUSSION:
A key goal of the Development Services Department ("Department") is to create greater operational efficiency for City staff, property owners, business owners, and stakeholders.
Currently, achieving such efficiency is difficult without an automated system to track all stages of a development entitlement and subsequent permit. The lack of automation increases processing timeframes and costs and subjects the department to potential errors by utilizing old, outdated paper processes. In 2018, the Department embarked on a path to evaluate and acquire tracking/permitting software that will assist in streamlining permitting, planning/zoning inquires, inspections, code enforcement, and increase efficiency and enhance customer service for residents, business owners, and stakeholders.
A survey was conducted by City staff of Orange County municipalities to determine the number of cities utilizing permit tracking/land management software and identify the software type used for their daily operations. City staff attempted to contact a representative of each respective city within Orange County. Of the 34 Orange County cities, 22 successfully responded to the phone survey with those cities identifying use of a tracking/permitting software for their daily operations.
Additionally, City staff conducted demonstrations with eight different permit tracking/land management vendors. Staff members from the departments/divisions of Planning, Building, Code Enforcement, Public Works, and Information Technology participated and evaluated each vendor in a series of interactive demonstrations. Utilizing a scorecard that evaluated each vendor in the following areas: (a) technical environment, (b) system features, (c) tracking and appointment features, (d) web interface, (e) reporting tools, (f) document management, (g) GIS functions, and (h) fee calculations, it was determined that DSI's SmartGov platform earned high marks in the noted areas. Although Development Services is leading the effort for permit tracking/land management software, Public Works and other departments will utilize the software.
SmartGov, which is provided by DSI is a cloud -based and mobile enabled platform that maximizes process efficiencies, reduces operating costs, and connects a community with customizable forms and workflows to manage permit processing, business licensing, code enforcement, inspections, and more. Back -end process automation, combined with an intuitive public portal, provides an end-to-end solution that streamlines permit routing flows and simplifies access for citizens,
City Council Agenda
February 1, 2022
contractors, and businesses. The platform enables a stronger connection with the community and increases citizen satisfaction, saving time and money by allowing 24/7 online access for residents and contractors to complete processes and check statuses. Furthermore, the platform assists in the simplification of permit routing and tracking for Staff members who can quickly see tasks and approvals pertinent to them. Configurable plan review and permit routing helps efficiency to meet organizational and community demand for scalable development and growth.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Implementation, licensing, and initial purchase costs amount to $125,724.67 and will be paid from SB 2 funds and the City's Technology Fund to cover the balance of the first three (3) years of the subscription. The balance of the first three (3) years will be paid upfront because SB 2 requires all grantees to complete reimbursement requests from the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) by February 28, 2022, for reimbursement by June 20, 2022. The inability to expend the funds will result in the City forfeiting the balance of the $100,000.00 allocated for permit tracking software. DSI worked with Staff to include the first three (3) years in the initial payment to avoid losing any grant funding. Years 4 and 5 subscriptions will be billed and paid annually. The annual costs for years 4 and 5 will be paid directly from the Technology Fund.
The Technology Fund, which is funded through a nominal fee tied to the total cost of a building permit, will provide the ongoing revenue for the SmartGov subscription for years 4 and 5. The total cost for a five-year subscription with DSI's SmartGov permit tracking/land management software will result in a total investment of $251,084.00.
Prepared by:
Andrew Go za e
Senior Plan er
Reviewed and approved:
en EElaRason
Interim Director of Finance City Administrator
Reviewed and approved:
Larr b•rt
D --ctor of Development Services
Reviewed and approved:
Damien R. Arrula
Attachments:
1. DSI Purchase and Implementation Proposal
2. DSI Master Subscription Agreement