Agenda Item #14.3
For Council Meeting of: October 14, 2025
CITY OF SANTA ROSA
CITY COUNCIL
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: BRIAN TICKNER, CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT SUBJECT: FIRST AMENDMENT TO PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH ACCELA, INC. FOR PERMITTING AND INSPECTION SOFTWARE AGENDA ACTION: MOTION
RECOMMENDATION
The Information Technology Department recommends that the Council, by motion, approve the First Amendment to Professional Services Agreement Number F002876 with Accela, Inc., San Ramon, California, to incorporate ePermitHub plan review software, in the amount of $264,761.72, for a total contract not to exceed $2,744,562.83, subject to approval as to form by the City Attorney. This item has no impact on current fiscal year budget.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Santa Rosa has used the ePermitHub system for digital plan review of building-related permits within the Planning and Economic Development and Fire Departments since August 2021. In April 2025, the City’s existing permitting system vendor, Accela, Inc., acquired ePermitHub. To allow for ongoing use and support of the ePermitHub system, consolidate contracts, and synchronize payment schedules, an amendment is needed to the existing contract with Accela, Inc. to add and extend ePermitHub for the remaining six years of the contract.
GOALS
This item relates to Council Goals #2 Invest in the Development and Maintenance of the City’s Infrastructure, #3 Promote Citywide Economic Development, #4 Foster a Safe, Healthy, and Inclusive Community, and #5 Plan for and Encourage Housing for All and Reduce Homelessness by continuing to digitize and streamline the building-related plan review process and making it easier for applicants to submit plans and revisions electronically while interacting with staff.
BACKGROUND/PRIOR COUNCIL REVIEW
On September 24, 2024, the City Council adopted RES-2024-159 authorizing a seven-year contract with Accela, Inc. for the cloud-based Accela Civic Platform that resulted from an extensive RFP process.
In April 2025, Accela, Inc. acquired ePermitHub, which is currently used by the City’s Planning and Economic Development and Fire Departments for digital plan review of building-related permits. The ePermitHub system is tightly integrated with the Accela Civic Platform and the current two-year contract is up for renewal.
ANALYSIS
ePermitHub has worked well at the City since its implementation in 2021 and is the only electronic plan review system fully supported by Accela. Usage of ePermitHub continues to grow as more permit types are made available online for electronic plan review. Additionally, the ePermitHub system provides:
Proven Functionality: The digital plan room software has been demonstrated to meet the City's requirements.
Familiarity: The system's user interface and functionality are known, minimizing the training costs and learning curve for staff and the public.
Integration Capabilities: The software has proven the ability to provide the required integrations to the City’s Accela Civic Platform Permitting, Inspection, and Code Enforcement System.
Proven Company: Accela, Inc. is a company with many years of experience providing permitting, inspection, and code enforcement software, supporting numerous municipalities with the size and complexities as the City of Santa Rosa.
Given the current seven-year contract with Accela, Inc. to continue using the Accela Civic Platform and the proven success of the integrated ePermitHub system, incorporating ePermitHub for the remaining six years of the Accela contract allows for contract consolidation and synchronization of payment schedules while ensuring the City continues to provide efficient and effective digital plan review services to the community while aligning with the City's operational goals.
FISCAL IMPACT
This item has no impact on the FY2025-2026 budget. Current budgets within the Information Technology Department Fund 001730, Enterprise Software GL Key 350307, meet the requirement for appropriations as previously approved by Council. Upcoming budget adoptions in years FY2026-2027 through FY2030-2031 will include this expense going forward, as follows:
Year 3 (FY2026-2027): $39,745.13
Year 4 (FY2027-2028): $41,732.38
Year 5 (FY2028-2029): $43,819.00
Year 6 (FY2029-2030): $46,009.95
Year 7 (FY2030-2031): $48,310.45
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378, the recommended action is not a “project” subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it does not have a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. In the alternative, the recommended action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the recommended action may have a significant effect on the environment.
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE REVIEW AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Not applicable.
NOTIFICATION
Not applicable.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – First Amendment
PRESENTER
Kiran Shah, IT Supervisor
FIRST AMENDMENT TO PSA WITH ACCELA INC
PAGE 3 OF 3