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Home My WebLink About7C, Approve Purchase of PermitWorks ~ ~HILLS Request for Council Action Prepared By: James Lehnhoff, Community Development Director Council Meeting Date: March 9, 2009 Motion to approve purchasing PermitWorks from TR Computer Sales, LLC for an amount not to exceed $29,520.00. Budgeted Amount: $0 Actual Amount: $27,025 Funding Source: Building Equipment and Replacement Fund Recommendation: Motion to approve purchasing PermitWorks from TR Computer Sales, LLC for an amount not to exceed $29,520.00. Supporting Documents: 1. March 9, 2009, Memo to the City Council ~ ~HILLS MEMORANDUM DATE: March 9,2009 TO: Mayor & City Council FROM: James Lehnhoff, Community Development Director Dave Scherbel, Building Official John Mennenga, Residential Building Inspector/Code Enforcement Officer Meagan Beekman, City Planner SUBJECT: Permit Software Review and Selection Reauested Action Motion to approve purchasing PermitWorks from TR Computer Sales, LLC for an amount not to exceed $29,520.00. Back!!round At the January 11, 2009, City Council meeting, the Community Development Department proposed a work plan for selecting and implementing a permit/code enforcement software package to replace the current software, PTWIN. The City had selected the program Ursa in January 2008, which is the update to PTWIN. However, Ursa has faced a number of delays and has yet to be released. In order to stay on track for the June 30, 2009, implementation deadline, staff has reviewed and evaluated seven software packages to select a recommended alternative to Ursa. Software Review and Evaluation Summary In addition to searching for software providers online, we contacted a dozen cities in the metropolitan area to find out what other cities are using and their experience with other software packages. We compiled a list of fourteen potential options and narrowed that list down to seven for a formal evaluation and demonstration. To be considered, the software package was required to meet or exceed our current software, which means that it must be able to process all types of building related permits, track code enforcement cases, process contractor's licenses, and prepare custom reports. Other desirable features included planning/zoning case tracking, business/rental \lAhdocsl\ahIAHdatalAdmin\Council\Agendas & Packet Information \2009\03-09-09 Regular\Packet Information \030909 - CC Report - Permit Software. doc Page 1 of 4 licensing, mobile access, web access for residents and contractors, the ability to connect to the City's financial software in order to share information across software platforms, and support for LaserFiche. The Community Development Department uses LaserFiche to archive all planning cases, packets, and permits. The current archiving process requires us to print the documents, scan them, and then archive them into LaserFiche. Having integration with LaserFiche would eliminate the need for scanning and printing since the permits could be archived directly into LaserFiche from the permit software. To help summarize the evaluation, the below chart includes the base cost for the required and included features, the annual support cost, and a five year cost estimate. The feature chart notes if a particular feature is included in the base cost, available for purchase, in development, or not available. Permit Software Feature and Cost Evaluation Estimated Cost Features Software Base Annual 5 Year Cost P&Z Licenses Mobile Web Finance Laserfiche Access Access Connection Connection BasicGov (LGM) $16,000 $18,000 $106,000 X X X X N N BluePrince $31,000 $4,100 $51,500 A X A A A A Municity $33,680 $1,780 $42,580 A X A N A A Municity LE $24,320 $1,220 $30,420 A A A N A A PermitSoft $31,300 $5, 1 00 $56,800 X X X X A N PermitWorks $29,520 $2,780 $43,420 X A 0 0 X X Springbrook $34,200 $2,940 $48,900 A A 0 0 X X Ursa $2,395 $1,500 $9,895 X X 0 N A N X - Included in Base Cost A - Add-on Module (additional cost) D - In Development (additional cost) N - Not available Since each software option is a bit different, it is difficult to make direct comparisons. Most of the software packages have various types of modules and features that can be changed cafeteria style. After reviewing the available features and costs, staffrecommends selecting PermitWorks. A short summary of the software options are provided below. · BasicGov (formerly Local Government Manager) - This web based software provided convenient mobile access and expansive permit and reporting options; however, this program was not able to offer a connection to the City's finance software or LaserFiche. Since the annual fee is based on the number of users, it can go up and down as the number of users charge. The fee in the chart is for five users, but the fee could increase about $3,000 per year for each additional user. · BluePrince - This well-developed software package provided all the required features in a nice, clean, and easy to use package with one of the best looking interfaces. However, the additional features above and beyond the required features would add significant cost. Including the planning & zoning, licensing, finance connection, and laserfiche integration would have added another $24,000 to the base cost and at least $1,500 to the annual cost. \lAhdocs1\ah\AHdatalAdmin\Council\Agendas & Packet Information \2009\03-09-09 RegularlPacket Information \030909 - CC Report - Permit Software. doc Page 2 of4 · Municity - This software package is designed for smaller and medium cities and would meet our permitting and reporting needs as well as offer good customization options. Similar to BluePrince, however, the additional desired features would add quite a bit of cost. Purchasing the planning & zoning and fi~ance connections would add another $12,080 to the base cost. This service also did not have any options for future web access for business and residents. · Municity LE - This option is the "light edition" of Municity. This is limited to five users and offers far less customization for our needs. The planning & zoning, finance connection, and LaserFiche modules would add $13,610 to the base cost. · PermitSoft - This web-based company has created a good site for managing permits, planning cases, code enforcement, and business licensing. It also included a web access component for residents and contractors to track permits. Creating a connection to the City's finance software is estimated to cost an additional $4,000, and they do not provide any connection to LaserFiche. The web connection was somewhat sluggish, which may inhibit its usefulness. · PermitWorks - See the below section for additional information. · Springbrook - This software option would be an extension of the City's existing financial software. The permitting and code enforcement process seemed a bit more complicated than the other software options; however, it would offer better integration between the address database and financial information. This program included an excellent integration feature with LaserFiche. The business licensing module would add approximately $10,600 to the base cost. This software is currently being overhauled to .NET, which is a newer type of database than their current software that will be discontinued. They recommended waiting for the .NET version; however, it is not anticipated to be released until the fourth quarter of2009, though a specific date has not been set. · Ursa - While this is the most affordable option, Black Bear Systems has not been able to meet their anticipated release dates. This software is highly customizable and includes expanded reporting features, which cures the primary limitation in the existing software, PTWIN. The software does not include the ability to integrate with LaserFiche, but it would be possible to export information to the City's finance software. According to Black Bear, they are able to offer a substantially lower price because they provide software to more than 1,200 jurisdictions, which is substantially more than the other options. Additionally, they do not require on-site installation, which reduces personnel and travel costs. Roseville IT reviewed the programs that would be installed on our network, and they did not anticipate any technical difficulties or hardware issues. PermitW orks PermitWorks was originally created in 1994 for the City of Oak dale and has since expanded to 44 cities in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The cities of New Brighton, Roseville, Mounds. View, and Shoreview use PermitWorks. Like most of the other programs, they are able to customize \lAhdocsllahIAHdata\PlanningIDepartment Records\Permit Software\030909 - CC Report - Permit Software. doc Page 3 of 4 the software to match the type of permits we issue and include custom information fields for tracking purposes. The price in the above chart includes the required features and the ability to track planning cases, create a connection to the City's finance software, and integrate with the LaserFiche archives. Since we reviewed this software in the fall of 2007, they have expanded their reporting functions and now offer customizable reports. They are currently developing a mobile/web access component, though a release date has not been set. PermitWorks can track code enforcement cases; however, they are revamping the code enforcement features this year, which will be provided through the annual support fee. Adding the business/rental licensing module will add about $3,000 to the base cost and $395 to the annual support fee. This module can be added when a rental licensing program is created. One of the most attractive features of Permit Works is their local users group that meets once per month. This user group suggests and guides changes to PermitW orks to expand and enhance its functionality. They also use this group to work through technical issues when one arises and share ideas on how each city is using the features in the software. If purchased, we would become a member of the user group and could influence its future development. Additionally, since all of our adj acent cities and our IT staff are familiar with Permit Works, we have additional resources for technical assistance. Finally, PermitWorks is a local company, which makes it easier to get on-site technical help quickly if it is needed. The work plan calls for full implementation no later than June 30. Based on our discussions with the PermitWorks staff, we anticipate implementation by the first week of June. Recommendation Staffrecommends approving the purchase of Permit Works from TR Computer Sales, LLC for an amount not to exceed $29,520.00. As noted above, PermitW orks also offers a rental registration/business licensing module. This would increase the base cost to $32,439 and the annual cost to $2,780. This module will be helpful when a rental registration program is implemented, but it can be added at a later date once we have the details of that program set. This purchase will be funded from the Building Equipment and Replacement Fund. The $2,495 refunds from Black Bear Systems for Ursa will be applied toward the purchase of Permit Works. \lAhdocs1\ahIAHdata\Planning\Department Records\Permit Software\030909 - CC Report - Permit Software.doc Page 4 of 4