Agenda Item #12.3
For Council Meeting of: March 1, 2022
CITY OF SANTA ROSA
CITY COUNCIL
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: SHAWN SOSA, ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST,
TRANSPORTATION & PUBLIC WORKS – TRANSIT
BRANDALYN TRAMEL, PURCHASING AGENT,
FINANCE DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: APPROVAL OF PURCHASE ORDER UNDER THE HOUSTON-GALVESTON AREA COUNCIL (H-GAC) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT (RA05-21) TO MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS, INC. TO REPLACE AND MODERNIZE EXISTING TRANSIT RADIOS AGENDA ACTION: RESOLUTION
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended by the Transportation and Public Works and Finance Departments that the Council, by resolution: 1) approve use of the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) Cooperative Agreement (Contract Number RA05-21) with Motorola Solutions, Inc. to issue a purchase order for Motorola radios, equipment, and installation in an amount not to exceed $330,000 to modernize and replace aging radio systems used by the Transit Division; and 2) authorize the Assistant City Manager to negotiate and execute any necessary agreement(s) to complete the purchase.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Transit Division of the Transportation and Public Works Department (CityBus) needs to replace its obsolete radio system. The backbone components of this system are over 30 years old, are no longer reliable, and parts are no longer commercially available for repairs. The damage caused during the wildfires to the citywide repeater equipment installation location requires CityBus to upgrade the system or take the risk of immediate loss of radio use in our fleet at any unexpected component failure.
The Police Department completed a radio upgrade and modernization project in early 2021 which allowed them to move to a digital trunked radio system on the 700MHz band to be P25 compliant for a more reliable system citywide.
This recommendation will enable the CityBus to purchase radios and become a part of the Police Department’s trunked system and provide an adaptable platform for critical wireless communication for our fleet of buses throughout the City. Use of $100,000 in PG&E settlement funds for this purpose was identified through City Council study sessions related to this one-time funding source and allocated accordingly.
BACKGROUND
CityBus operates fixed-route service to the public 7 days a week, and effective radio communication is vital to CityBus day-to-day operations, especially during emergency events where CityBus has provided evacuation services at locations where members of our community were in dire need of critical transportation assistance. The radio infrastructure in use by CityBus is obsolete and presents significant risks of system failure. The system dates back to the mid-late 1980s, and over 85% of the entire system, including field radios, has reached the end of their supported life, with an end of supported life on the remaining field radios fast approaching. The current radio system is an all-analog UHF system, and the system parts and components are outdated and are no longer manufactured.
In 2016, the Police Department received approval from the City Manager for a five-year standard specification for the purchase of radio equipment from Motorola. It was determined that it was in the City’s best interest to standardize on a single manufacturer to ensure secure radio communications, product uniformity and operation efficiencies.
In early 2020, CityBus was notified of planned work at the City’s Fire Communication facilities at Reservoir 5 (R5) on Skyfarm Dr. due to damage from one of the recent wildfire events. This notice was to prepare the CityBus for a lengthy radio service interruption due to the disassembly of the existing radio repeater while the metal tank reservoir undergoes repairs. Discussions ensued with the I.T. Department, Police Department, Motorola, and Day Wireless, as to what options CityBus had to retain communications amongst its fleet while a multi-month construction project would occur.
In early 2021, the Police Department completed the upgrade with an accompanying 9-year term service agreement with Motorola for their digital trunked P25 compliant system. This upgrade allowed for improved capabilities and expanded geographic coverage. During this time, staff identified the opportunity to upgrade our defunct system to join the Police Departments trunked P25 Compliant digital system rather than reinstall obsolete and potentially unreliable radio infrastructure following the R5 project.
The City of Santa Rosa received $95M from PG&E to settle a claim for its 2017 wildfire damages. As there are no restrictions on how these funds can be used, Santa Rosa City Council has considered a range of projects primarily focused on strengthening the resiliency of the community. Of the $95M, $68M were obligated to General Fund reserves, fire resiliency, and fire recovery projects. An additional $20M was committed to the RED Housing Accelerator Fund and the Roseland Library. Uses for the remaining $7M were discussed by Council, culminating in the final November 30, 2021, Council study session during which the Radio Replacement was considered and part of the approved list of projects.
PRIOR CITY COUNCIL REVIEW
December 18, 2018, the City Council, by Resolution No. 2018-221, approved the Police Department communications system and services agreement with Motorola Solutions, Inc.
December 10, 2019, the City Council, by Resolution No. 2019-181, approved an amendment to the Police Department communications system agreement with Motorola Solutions, Inc., and an accompanying equipment lease-purchase agreement.
June 29, 2021, the City Council, by Resolution No. 2021-116, approved an extension to fund the maintenance and software system for 9 additional years.
November 30, 2021, City Council One-Time Monies Study Session; direction provided; action taken that included this project in the approved project list.
February 15, 2022, City Council approved the appropriations for the use of PG&E settlement funds for this Transit Division radio replacement project as identified through previous City Council study sessions related to this one-time funding source.
ANALYSIS
Enhancement
Currently the Transit Division’s radio system is exposed to failure of aging components and an inability to source replacement parts and accessories, which could lead to major issues with communications with the fleet of vehicles that carry members of the public.
This recommended system upgrade would enhance CityBus’ ability to communicate with to the fleet throughout the city. Additionally, we would be a part of a contracted system with maintenance and service for many years. In addition, if needed in the event of emergencies, moving onto the Police Department’s system adds the ability to work with mutual aid agencies by “sharing” a channel or developing an incident specific talk group. These talk groups can be deployed within minutes and all personnel can be assigned to them as soon as it is activated.
System
The Police Department radio system is a digital trunked main that includes their dispatch modules, field deployed radios, tower equipment and data exchange and operates on the 700 and 800 MHz bands. This makes up the entire infrastructure in which the radio system exists, which is modern and fully supported by Motorola. The new system provides a redundant core with redundant servers and network devices to prevent a single point of failure.
Cooperative Agreement
The Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) Cooperative Purchasing Program is a competitive bidding process that assists local governments in reducing costs through this government-to-government procurement service available nationwide.
Santa Rosa City Code Section 3-08.160 permits cooperative purchases when advantageous to the City. H-GAC’s procurement process includes research, specifications preparation, pre-bid and preproposal conferences, legal notice posting and advertising, bid/proposal review and contract execution available at a national level. Additional benefits to utilizing a cooperative purchase agreement is an expedited procurement process, volume purchasing discounts, on-duty professional staff assistance, research and development of technical specifications, and contract management services provided by the lead Agency (H-GAC). Based on the pricing the City obtains under the H-GAC Cooperative, Transit and Purchasing staff consider it advantageous to the city to use the cooperative purchase. Upon approval by Council, a purchase order will be issued using the city’s standard Purchase Order Terms and Conditions for the radios, equipment, and installation.
In connection with the purchase of the equipment and installation, Motorola may require the City to agree to additional terms and conditions. Staff recommends that Council authorize the Assistant City Manager to negotiate and execute any necessary agreement(s) to complete the purchase, subject to approval as to form by the City Attorney.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for this procurement includes $230,000 from a capital allocation of CityBus’ State Transportation Development Act Article IV funding.
Additional funding is provided from an appropriation of $100,000 of PG&E settlement funds to the appropriate Transit Capital Fund. Appropriation of these one-time funds does not cause an ongoing impact to the General Fund.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The Council finds that the proposed action is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under section 15061(b)(3) and 15378 in that there is no possibility that the implementation of this action may have significant effects on the environment, and that no further environmental review is required
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Not applicable.
NOTIFICATION
Not applicable.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 - (H-GAC Buy Cooperative Agreement with Motorola Solutions Inc. No RA05-21) Attachment 2 – Quote 1636657 from Motorola Solutions
Resolution
CONTACT
Shawn Sosa, Administrative Analyst, [email protected], 707-543-3334
Brandalyn Tramel, [email protected] 707-543-3706
Jennifer Myles, [email protected] 707-543-3702
APPROVAL AND ISSUANCE OF PURCHASE ORDER UNDER THE HOUSTON-GALVESTON AREA COUNCIL (H-GAC) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT (RA05-21) TO MOTOROLA SOLUTIONS, INC. TO REPLACE AND MODERNIZE EXISTING TRANSIT RADIOS PAGE 3 OF 3