City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: December 17, 2024
Agenda Item: 5.L
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Ramon Batista, Police Chief, Police Department
Subject: Award Proposal and Enter into Agreement with SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. for Investigative and Real-Time Video Analytics Platform.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Award the contract for RFP #418 to SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. for services related to the development of an investigative and real-time video analytics platform for the Police Department.
2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. in an amount not to exceed $716,562 over a three-year period, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
3. Adopt a finding that the agreement is not a “project” subject to the California Environmental Quality Act.
Summary
For decades, police investigators have spent hundreds of hours reviewing video to locate suspect vehicles, license plates, suspects, and other articles. Historically, this video review has been done manually and made for an arduous and time-consuming process where any lapse in the reviewer’s attention could cause evidence to be missed.
Modern video analytics software platforms can process video, condense timelines, and generate real-time alerts allowing for a dramatic reduction in the need for personnel to monitor video feeds.
As part of the Santa Monica Analytical Real Time Center, or “SMART Center” project, the Santa Monica Police Department (“SMPD”), in partnership with the City’s Information Services Department, set out to acquire a video analytics platform to 2 of 5
support the SMART Center and its goal of reducing, detecting, and deterring Organized Retail Theft (“ORT”), vehicle theft, and catalytic converter theft. After a competitive procurement process, staff recommends awarding the contract to SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. for the development of SMPD’s video analytics platform. The agreement includes hardware (servers), licensing, training, and integration with the City’s existing video management system. This is an ownership purchase of the licenses and equipment, which the City will own. The agreement also includes three years of maintenance and updates.
Discussion
The Santa Monica Police Department is in the process of building the Santa Monica Analytical Real Time Center or “SMART Center.” The SMART Center will be a mission critical, around-the-clock, Real-Time Crime Center (RTCC) used to harness the City’s technological sources of intelligence into one center. The SMART Center will have a live-response capability and an investigative-support capability. Both roles will utilize the City’s existing (and soon to be expanded and modernized) security video camera network.
Almost every law enforcement investigation conducted today has some video evidence component involved with it. During complex investigations, multiple sources of lengthy video evidence are collected for preservation, for the purpose of developing leads when (or if) the time can be allocated to review it. Modern video analytics platforms can condense these lengthy videos and their corresponding review process, allowing days of video to be reviewed in minutes. Video analytics platforms can extract and categorize objects in live or recorded video, allowing for rapid review and discovery of suspects and events of interest.
Video analytics platforms can also generate live alerts prompted by behavioral triggers set by users. Cameras can alert to the presence of people or vehicles in areas they are not supposed to be, objects that have been moved from a scene, or bicycles riding on the 3rd St. Promenade at 3:00a.m. This will allow staff working in the SMART Center to respond to alerts, rather than staring at camera screens looking for anomalies. This agreement is only for an analytics software platform only. It does not create new video, 3 of 5
but rather saves pointers and indexes for the original video that exists and remains in the City’s existing video storage solution.
This process will revolutionize, modernize, and make more efficient current police investigative and response practices leading to higher case-clearance rates and more time for investigators to handle other investigative priorities. The anticipated annual maintenance and upgrade costs at the conclusion of the three-year period is $61,161.
There is currently no funding source for the continuation of this service past the initial three years. The system will continue to operate without the maintenance and support service, but staff will look at using other City funds or grant opportunities to continue this service in future budget cycles.
Vendor Selection
Bidder Recommendation
Best Qualified Person/Firm SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc.
Evaluation Criteria Experience, competence/skill, capacity/ability to perform services promptly, character/reputation, ability to provide future services as needed and price.
Municipal Code SMMC 2.24.190
RFPs Received
Celplan Technologies Channelstars Convergint
Technologies
EMR CPR LLC.
Paladin Technologies SurveillanceGRID
Integration Inc.
Vector Resources,
Inc. dba VectorUSA
RFP Data
Posted On Posted On
Advertised In
(City Charter & SMMC)
Vendors
Downloaded
Date Publicly
Opened
08/19/2024 City's Online
Bidding Site Santa Monica Daily Press 37 09/13/2024
Justification to Award
Staff evaluated seven proposals during the procurement process. After live demonstrations from six of the proposers (one failed to make a proposal appointment) staff focused on four of the most capable proposals consistent with the RFP requirements and rigorous demands of SMPD’s use case and without regard to price.
SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. had the most experience integrating BriefCam into public-facing environments with excellent reviews from their prior customers. When factoring in the pricing of the proposals, SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. was also the 4 of 5
lowest-price bidder.
Based on this criteria and criteria in SMMC 2.24.190, staff recommends SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. as the best qualified firm to provide investigative and real-time video analytics platform based on the firm’s area of expertise, experience with similar projects or other City projects, the result of reference checks, and price.
Environmental Review
The agreement is not a “project” subject to CEQA. The agreement would allow for the purchase of a video analytics platform to support the goal of reducing, detecting, and deterring theft. Pursuant to CEQA Section 21065, the project does not meet the definition of a “project” subject to CEQA as it will not “cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment”. Additionally, per Section 15378(b) of the CEQA Guidelines, a “project” does not include administrative activities of governments, such as purchases for supplies, that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment.
Therefore, the agreement for a video analytics platform is not subject to CEQA.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to approve available funding from the Miscellaneous Grants Fund to award an agreement with SurveillanceGRID Integration Inc. for an Investigative and Real-Time Video Analytic Platform.
Contract Request
Funding Source FY 2024-25
Request Amount Account # Total Contract Amount
BSSC Organized
Retail Theft
Prevention Grant
$716,562 20180001.556631 $716,562
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval. 5 of 5
Prepared By: Jose Arroyo, Senior Administrative Analyst Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. SurveillanceGRID - OAKS INITIATIVE
B. SurveillanceGRID - Levine Act