December 16, 2025
Public Works
DATE: December 16, 2025
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM: Daniel Chavarria, PE, Director of Public Works
Robert Armijo, PE, Deputy Director of Public Works / City Engineer, Bradley Harms, Environmental Manager
Subject: Contract with SewerAI Corp for Stormwater and
Wasterwater Inspection and Data Management Services
FINANCIAL IMPACT: Total cost for the this expenditure will not exceed $445,770, over three years. All costs will be funded by the Sewer Enterprise Fund, with no impact on the
General Fund. Adequate appropriations exist in the
current fiscal year budget to support the Year-1 expenses of $295,000 and the planned ongoing annual subscription costs of $75,000 in future years. (Account String: 4003 40322931-400708-01U10).
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
None.
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
The City maintains extensive sanitary sewer and storm
drainage systems that require reliable inspection data to support regulatory compliance, asset management, and
long-term capital planning. The City’s historical closed circuit television (CCTV) inspection records are dispersed across multiple formats and databases, limiting staff’s ability to efficiently assess system condition and develop prioritized rehabilitation strategies. A unified inspection data platform is needed to consolidate these records,
standardize future inspection workflows, and support
system-wide asset-management activities. City staff is
requesting City Council approval of a Professional
Services Agreement with SewerAI Corp. to implement
AGENDA
REPORT
December 16, 2025
this platform and to migrate the City’s existing CCTV
archive into a single accessible repository.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: ADOPT a resolution to APPROVE a contract with SewerAI Corp for inspection and data management
services of the wastewater and stormwater programs,
including consolidation of the City’s historical CCTV
inspection library and implementation of the PIONEER®
platform, for a three-year term from December 16, 2025, through December 15, 2028, with two optional one-year
extensions, and AUTHORIZE the City Manager or their
designee to execute the contract - Public Works
Department (Bradley Harms 307-8094/Robert Armijo
620-5477).
DISCUSSION:
City staff is recommending approval of a Professional Services Agreement (PSA) with SewerAI Corp. to support the City’s wastewater and stormwater inspection program through deployment of the PIONEER® cloud-based inspection data platform and associated professional services. The agreement would establish a three-year base term, with two additional one-year optional extensions at the City’s discretion.
The City operates extensive sanitary sewer and storm drainage collection systems that require ongoing condition assessment, maintenance planning, and rehabilitation programming. State regulatory frameworks—including the State Water Resources Control Board’s Waste Discharge Requirements for Sanitary Sewer Systems (SSS WDR), Sanitary Sewer Management Plan (SSMP) requirements, and the City’s NPDES Municipal Stormwater Permit—require agencies to maintain current system-condition information, document inspection practices, identify risk-prioritized repair needs, and develop long-term capital improvement strategies. Meeting these expectations requires reliable access to consistent, standardized inspection data.
Over the past decade, the City has accumulated a substantial closed-circuit television (CCTV) inspection library across both sewer and storm assets, but these records are dispersed across multiple contractors, formats, and storage locations. This fragmentation prevents staff from evaluating system conditions efficiently, integrating inspection data with GIS, developing risk-based prioritization, or producing the analyses needed to support compliance audits and long-term capital planning. City staff reviewed technology platforms capable of consolidating, migrating, and standardizing large volumes of CCTV data and determined that the PIONEER® platform provides the most comprehensive and scalable solution for the City’s needs.
Under the proposed agreement, the vendor will migrate the City’s historical CCTV archive—estimated at up to 12 terabytes—and consolidate several legacy databases into a unified inspection repository. Once consolidated, City staff will be able to access,
December 16, 2025
review, and update inspections through a single system that supports Pipeline Assessment Certification Program (PACP), Lateral Assessment Certification Program (LACP), and Manhole Assessment Certification Program (MACP) standards; provides tools for quality assurance; and allows engineers to identify structural deficiencies, maintenance needs, and high-risk pipeline segments. The platform will also support consistent processing of newly collected inspections, ensuring that future data remains usable for asset management, compliance documentation, and capital planning purposes.
This effort aligns with the City’s broader asset-management objectives and will enable Staff to improve service delivery, reduce uncertainty in system condition forecasting, and better support regulatory compliance. Consolidating the City’s inspection data into a single platform is a critical step toward developing a reliable, data-driven foundation for pipeline maintenance and capital rehabilitation programming.
The City is eligible to procure these services through the HGACBuy cooperative purchasing program (Contract No. SC06-24), which provides competitively bid pricing for inspection data management services and related support (Attachment 1).
Procurement is being completed under the City’s cooperative purchasing and piggyback authority in Chapter 2.52 of the Richmond Municipal Code (Attachment 2). City staff reviewed HGACBuy Contract No. SC06-24 and confirmed that it was awarded through a competitive solicitation that meets or exceeds the City’s procurement requirements.
City staff further determined that the scope, pricing, and term of the proposed agreement are consistent with the cooperative contract, and that no local vendors offer equivalent services at competitive rates.
City staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution approving a three-year contract with SewerAI Corp, with two optional one-year extensions, for wastewater and stormwater inspection and data management services, including consolidation of the City’s CCTV inspection library and deployment of the PIONEER® platform, and authorize the City Manager or designee to execute the agreement (Attachment 3 and 4). The agreement will follow the City’s standard PSA structure, including a three-year base term with two optional one-year extensions at the City’s discretion. Approval of this contract will allow the City to modernize its inspection data management practices, improve system-wide visibility into asset conditions, and support long-term capital planning and regulatory compliance
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – HGACBuy Contract SC06-24 (Executed)
Attachment 2 – Piggyback Form
Attachment 3 – Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Execute a Professional Services Agreement with SewerAI Corp
Attachment 4 – Professional Services Agreement