Web Page Design RFPDubuque
THF. CITY OF
~T T~ ~ AN-An~ri~aCiry
1J ffi .
Mcrst~rpiece on the Mississippi
2007
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Website RFP
DATE: February 27, 2008
Information Services Manager Chris Kohlmann requests City Council approval to issue
a Request for Proposal for website improvements for the City of Dubuque website,
which would include:
Website System Design and Support: Provide a new look and "feel" for the
City's website that is dynamic, appealing, informative and easy to navigate;
II. E-Government & E-Commerce: To give citizens and business users of billable
City services an easy to use and secure method for on-line bill and fee payment
and review of account information;
III. Mapping Portal: To provide citizens, developers and other interested partner
organizations an easy to use interactive web-based mapping portal utilizing the
City's Geographic Information System;
IV. On-line Incident Management System: To provide citizens an easy to use portal
for the purpose of reporting incidents and complaints;
V. Public Engagement: To increase local government's communication with
constituents through the electronic acceptance of input and feedback;
VI. Interface for Public Documents Database: To increase public access to
documents, public records and other local government information; and
VII. Streaming Video: To increase constituents' access to local government meetings
and programs by providing the ability to view live and archived local government
meetings and programs.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
1
Michael C. Van Milligen ~. ~"-j-~ j
MCVM/jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Chris Kohlmann, Information Services Manager
Dubuque
THE CITY OF
~•~
~j T~ ~ All-AmeticaCitY
V ;~ .~
1Vlasterpiece o~~ tl~e Miss~issi~~ri ~ .
zoos
TO: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Chris Kohlmann, Information Services Manager
SUBJECT: Website RFP
DATE: February 25, 2008
BACKGROUND
Since 2001 the City of Dubuque, in partnership with Mission Creative of Dubuque, has
maintained content and hosted the website www.cityofdubugue.org. The original purpose of
the website was primarily to share information, calendar items and announcements. The
target audience of the website was Dubuque citizens. The website was to be maintained by
staff from each City department and division and not a dedicated "web master."
Expectations and functionality for municipal government websites have increased
significantly since 2001 and a budget request was approved in FY2007 to fund the following
improvements to the City of Dubuque website:
I. Website System Design and Support: Provide a new look and "feel" for the City's
website that is dynamic, appealing, informative and easy to navigate;
II. E-Government & E-Commerce: To give citizens and business users of billable City
services an easy to use and secure method for on-line bill and fee payment and review
of account information;
III. Mapping Portal: To provide citizens, developers and other interested partner
organizations an easy to use interactive web-based mapping portal utilizing the City's
Geographic Information System;
IV. On-line Incident Management System: To provide citizens an easy to use portal for
the purpose of reporting incidents and complaints;
V. Public Engagement: To increase local government's communication with constituents
through the electronic acceptance of input and feedback;
VI. Interface for Public Documents Database: To increase public access to documents,
public records and other local government information;
VII. Streaming Video: To increase constituents' access to local government meetings and
programs by providing the ability to view live and archived local government meetings
and programs.
The City is prepared to issue a Request for Proposals for this project. Members of the team
that will review proposals are proposed to be: Michael Van Milligen, City Manager; Cindy
Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager; Chris Kohlmann, Information Services Manager; Randy
Gehl, Public Information Officer; Aaron Dejong, Assistant Director of Economic Development;
Craig Nowack, Cable TV Coordinator; Nikki Breitsprecker, GIS Analyst/Coordinator; Kelly
Larson, Human Rights Director; Rick Till, Financial Analyst; Pat Prevenas, Recreation
Division Manager; and Cori Burbach, Management Intern. This group has been meeting
regularly over the past two months to review the current website and to define the scope of
the redesign and enhancements that are needed.
DISCUSSON
Attached please find a draft RFP for the website improvements. The timeline for this project
is:
Event Date
Issue Proposal March 4, 2008
Vendor -Pre-proposal Meeting (required) March 11, 2008 1:30 pm Conference
Room A City Hall
Last Day for vendors to submit questions April 1, 2008
Last Day for Addendums to be issued March 28, 2008
Proposal Due (no allowances or
exceptions will be made for late proposals) April 4, 2008
Onsite Interviews of Short-listed Vendors Apr 16 - 17, 2008
Recommendation to City Manager April 21, 2008
Recommendation to Dubuque City Council May 5, 2008
Implementation, Conversion and Training May 6 -Aug 29, 2008
BUDGET IMPACT
The budget available for this project is approximately $100,000. This is a CIP allocation.
Additionally, $2520 is budgeted annually for website hosting and maintenance.
ACTION
The requested action is for City Council to approve issuance of the Request for Proposal.
Cc: Website Redesign Committee
CITY OF DUBUQUE
WEBSITE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
INTRODUCTION
The City of Dubuque, Iowa, will receive proposals to acquire service and support for an
updated website. The goals and business problems that this RFP addresses are:
I. Website System Design and Support: Provide a new look and "feel" for the City's
website that is dynamic, appealing, informative and easy to navigate;
E-Government & E-Commerce: To give citizens and business users of billable City
services an easy to use and secure method for on-line bill and fee payment and review
of account information;
III. Mapping Portal: To provide citizens, developers and other interested partner
organizations an easy to use interactive web-based mapping portal utilizing the City's
Geographic Information System;
IV. On-line Incident Management System: To provide citizens an easy to use portal for
the purpose of reporting incidents and complaints;
V. Public Engagement: To increase local government's communication with constituents
through the electronic acceptance of input and feedback;
VI. Interface for Public Documents Database: To increase public access to documents,
public records and other local government information;
VII. Streaming Video: To increase constituents' access to local government meetings and
programs by providing the ability to view live and archived local government meetings
and programs.
This proposal will be "design-build" as many facets of this project are open to further analysis
and complete specifications have not been finalized.
COMMUNITY PROFILE
The City of Dubuque is located on the Mississippi River in northeastern Iowa, adjacent to
Illinois and Wisconsin. The City is approximately 30 square miles in area, with a population
of approximately 60,000. The City's annual budget is over $116 million and the City provides
a full range of services.
The community has a stable and diversified manufacturing base and a growing service
sector. Dubuque is the major retail, medical, educational and employment center for the Tri-
State area. Tourism continues to be a major economic force in the community. City
government continues to work in collaboration with the private sector to promote economic
development.
BACKGROUND
The City of Dubuque website (www.cityofdubugue.org)tyas developed in 2001 and has not
changed significantly "look and feel" or functionality since its inception. The approximately
650 page site is organized by the City's 27 departments and divisions. Each
department/division is responsible for maintaining their information on the site. The site's
index page includes major links, announcements, upcoming events, and a static image.
Recently, icons for current initiatives have been added to highlight new programs or major
news.
TIMELINE
The timeline for this proposal is as follows:
Event Date
Issue Proposal March 4, 2008
Vendor -Pre-proposal Meeting (required) March 11, 2008 1:30 pm Conference
Room A City Hall
Last Day for vendors to submit questions April 1, 2008
Last Day for Addendums to be issued March 28, 2008
Proposal Due (no allowances or
exceptions will be made for late proposals) April 4, 2008
Onsite Interviews of Short-listed Vendors Apr 16 - 17, 2008
Recommendation to City Manager April 21, 2008
Recommendation to Dubuque City Council May 5, 2008
Implementation, Conversion and Training May 6 -Aug 29, 2008
FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND PROJECT SCOPE
The following section describes an overview of functional needs. Some portions of this
specification contain design and creativity elements. This RFP is therefore presented as a
"design-build" RFP. This approach gives vendors some latitude in their design presented,
providing their proposal meets the minimum requirements stated.
I. Website System Design and Support:
Purpose:
The City seeks a new graphic appearance and modified navigation design for the City's
website that is dynamic, visually appealing, informative and easy to navigate; and easy to
update. The new design and content management system should be intuitive for a wide
variety of users and allow quick access to information on a wide variety of services and
programs.
Background:
The City's current website contains approximately 650 pages of information. The selected
vendor will be responsible for providing an estimate and methodology for conversion of the
content of current website content to the proposed format.
The City does not currently maintain the position of a webmaster. The proposed system must
be capable of being updated and maintained by end-users employing an interface that
mimics Microsoft Word in form and in function.
Expected Results:
Administrative functionality must exist to maintain users. Security functionality must provide
for user access to only those areas of the website where users are given rights to update
page content. Administrators must have access to all areas of the website. Administrative
functionality should also include an ability to make modifications to the main/index page of
the site.
A searchable help function must exist to assist users with operation of the updating interface.
Page content should have functionality to set time-outs so that content will "expire" and no
longer appear after the date automatically.
Page content should have an ability to be "featured" on the main page.
Web page URLs should have an ability to be named to allow for marketing and promotion to
specific sites (i.e. www.cityofdubuque.org/engineering)
11. E-Government & E-Commerce: To give citizens and business users of billable City
services an easy to use and secure method for on-line bill payment and review of account
information
Purpose:
To provide citizens and businesses the ability to securely pay bills and view account
information for Utility Billing, Pet Licensing, Parking Violations, Permit Fees, Monthly Parking
Rentals and Miscellaneous Receivables via a secure web portal connection. The secure web
portal is not intended to replace any City staff currently providing "counter service" at City
Hall; rather it is meant to enhance services to the City's customers at times and locations
convenient to them.
Background:
Many times citizens and business customers would like to pay fees and request information
about accounts and services outside of the normal Monday -Friday Sam - 5pm hours of
operation. The current trends in society shows an individual more likely to approach doing
business on the internet than in the past. Citizens should be able to view past and current
billing and payment information when discussing an invoice, license or service with City
personnel.
The interface created must be intuitive and provide guidance and help to the novice user.
Information explaining the data shown on all query screens should be available by "mouse
over" quick information and links to more detailed information about detail shown on the
pages.
The interface must also be created so that a high speed internet connection is not required
since over 50% of the internet users in the Dubuque community still utilize adial-up
connection. The interface must be capable of use by those that have physical disabilities.
On-line payments must provide for both electronic checks and credit cards. The
interface must be able to compute a percentage and/or fixed convenience fee. The
convenience fee will be applied to the total.
The portal will access data from legacy billing and licensing systems maintained by the City.
Current Legacy applications are Sungard Pentamation CommunityPlus for Utility Billing and
AIMS for Parking. Update processing will be determined as part of the design phase of the
project.
In order to maintain the security of the data used for this application, access by software
programs must be granted only after authentication with credentials. The credentials used for
this authentication must not reside in the main, executing body of the program's source code
in clear text. Database credentials must not be stored in a location that can be accessed
through a web server. The application must implement the use of "strong passwords" and
security standards for e-commerce as defined by security organizations such as SANS and
CERT. (Further security needs will be specifically determined during project design).
Expected Results:
It is anticipated that citizens and business users of City provided services would use this
portal to conveniently pay bills and to query account information. The added convenience of
bill payment could increase the amount of and frequency of on-time payments received by
the City.
Request:
It is preferred that a hosted model for this application be utilized whereby data, applications,
user and administrator access, payment processing and all hardware be maintained and
housed at the application service provider's site. The City would be responsible for sending
and receiving data to/from the application via a secure file transfer protocol and mutually
agreed upon file format. It is assumed that the transfer would take place in a mutually agreed
upon manner either "attended" by operators or "unattended" happening automatically.
The City would also be responsible for securing and maintaining any domain names
associated with the application. All data would remain owned by the City of Dubuque
regardless of where the data resides.
III. Web-Based Mapping Access
Purpose:
To provide citizens, developers and other interested partner organizations the ability to query
and view GIS data and applications using ArcIMS and/or ArcGIS Server.
Background:
The City has recently acquired ArcGIS Server and ArcIMS, and will be transitioning all GIS
data from a shapefile and file geodatabase environment to an ArcSDE environment. Part of
the transition will include creating web-based mapping applications that will be available to
both City employees and the public.
The City does not currently have an Internet outlet for the City's geographic data. Dubuque
County provides some access to The City's information, such as zoning, through their ArcIMS
website. However, it is the goal of the City to have astand-alone GIS viewer that will enable
citizens to view a variety of geographic information in auser-friendly mapping environment,
and will also allow secured access to city employees.
The City also produces a number of maps that are made available to the public via the
existing website. It is anticipated that this service will continue with the new website, allowing
users to quickly access and view ready-made maps tailored to specific data themes.
The mapping applications will be created by the City, and will be hosted by the successful
vendor. The hosting vendor must be capable of providing a website to which maps can be
published from ArcGIS Server, and be capable of allowing secure access with a separate
login and password if necessary to certain portals for web-based mapping.
Expected Results:
It is anticipated that citizens, developers and other partner agencies will utilize this portal for
creating and printing maps. This web-based mapping application will be accessible from the
GIS homepage of the hosted website for the City of Dubuque.
IV. On-line Incident Management and Citizen Relationship Management System: To
provide citizens an easy to use portal for the purpose of reporting incidents and submitting
complaints and requests.
Purpose:
To provide aweb-based portal, to input information regarding a complaint or inquiry. The
complaint or inquiry would be automatically routed to the proper City department/division.
The complaint or inquiry would show a recorded history of actions with notification to citizens
as actions are taken on the complaint or inquiry.
Background:
The City currently utilizes a hosted internal incident tracking system. It is desired to create an
application for use by both City staff and citizens through a secure web portal. The
application must be intuitive and provide guidance and help to the novice user. Information
explaining the data shown on all query screens should be available by "mouse over" quick
information and links to more detailed information about detail shown on the pages.
Citizens would be guided through the process of entering a complaint or inquiry using a
series of drop down menus using common language and not technical jargon. Citizens would
have an option of receiving a call back or return a-mail regarding the incident. Citizens could
also login and view the status of their incident or query. Citizens would be informed as the
status of their incident changed or actions were taken.
On the "back-end" of the application, City staff would view and respond to incidents.
Reminder notifications on specifically timed intervals would be sent for incidents not
completed. An escalation process for notification must be available.
Easy reporting for incidents by type, location and employee must be available. Data must be
able to be downloaded in a delimited format.
The interface must be created so that ahigh-speed internet connection is not required since
over 50% of the internet users in the Dubuque community still utilize adial-up connection.
The interface must be capable of use by those that have physical disabilities.
In order to maintain the security of the data used for this application, access by software
programs must be granted only after authentication with credentials. The credentials used for
this authentication must not reside in the main, executing body of the program's source code
in clear text. Database credentials must not be stored in a location that can be accessed
through a web server. The application must implement the use of "strong passwords" and
security standards for e-commerce as defined by security organizations such as SANS and
CERT. (Further security needs will be specifically determined during project design).
Expected Results:
It is anticipated that citizens will utilize this portal to report incidents, request information and
later track their input. The benefit for citizens is a convenient method to record information.
The benefit for the City would be more information and an ability to better respond to the
needs of the citizens.
Request:
It is preferred that a hosted model for this application be utilized whereby data, applications,
user and administrator access, payment processing and all hardware be maintained and
housed at the application service provider's site. The City would be responsible for sending
and receiving data to/from the application via a secure file transfer protocol and mutually
agreed upon file format. It is assumed that the transfer would take place in a mutually agreed
upon manner either "attended" by operators or "unattended" happening automatically.
The City would also be responsible for securing and maintaining any domain names
associated with the application. All data would remain owned by the City of Dubuque
regardless of where the data resides.
V. Public Engagement: To increase the City of Dubuque's communication with constituents
through the use of electronic subscriptions, notifications, and user-initiated and automated
communications.
Purpose:
The purpose of this project is to add the functionality of subscription-based notifications and
e-mails, interactive forms and electronic surveys to the City of Dubuque web site.
Background:
The City of Dubuque's current web site offers a-mail links and contact information such as
phone numbers, mailing addresses and office hours, and recently added simple, online forms
whereby citizens can complete a form to submit input on City services and programs to the
appropriate staff.
Specifically, the City seeks the ability for individuals to subscribe to automatically receive e-
newsletters and a-mail notifications when certain calendar items or announcements are
posted to the web site.
Other applications of this functionality are numerous, but include:
• Employment Applications
• Boards and Commissions Applications
• Public Input Forms for various issues such as updating the City's Comprehensive Plan
or Downtown Master Plan
• City Council Requests/Comment Forms
• Grant Applications and Funding Request Forms
• Subscription Forms for Solid Waste and Recycling Collection
• Utility Service Request Forms
• Economic Development Information Requests
• Human Rights Complaint Forms
• Project Bids and Responses to Requests for Proposals (RFPs)
• Public Opinion Surveys on New Initiatives or Community Issues
• Digital Data and Map Request Forms
Request:
Data received from form input should be accessible by City staff via a secure interface .
It is preferred that a hosted model for this application be utilized whereby data, applications,
user and administrator access, and all hardware be maintained and housed at the application
service provider's site. The City would be responsible for sending and receiving data to/from
the application via a secure site.
VI. Public Documents: To increase public access to documents, public records and other
local government information
Proiect Purpose:
The purpose of this project is to create an online documents and a records management
system which will allow citizens, staff and other interested parties to utilize one online access
point for public meeting agendas, minutes, supportive documents, and other public record
information. This project would provide the public with self-serve information access.
Background:
Currently, agendas for City Council and City commission and board agendas are posted on
the City's web site before each meeting, as required by code. Minutes from City Council
meetings are also regularly posted, but most commission and board meeting minutes are not
regularly posted. They are, however, available by request.
Due to file size constraints, the City Council agenda that is posted to the web site is a
simplified version which does not contain the many related documents included with each
agenda item, such as City staff memorandums, letters, maps, architectural renderings, and
other information. Currently, these documents are only available by request.
At this time, City Council meeting agendas and minutes more than a month old are not
available online. Citizens interested in researching a past agenda item or City Council
minutes must call or visit City Hall during business hours to have a staff member search for
and copy the materials they seek.
Expected Results in this Protect:
By adding a documents and records management system function to the City of Dubuque
web site, citizens will have "24/7" access from any computer with Internet access to the
agendas, minutes, and related documents from City Council, Commission, and Board
meetings.
A link on the City web site will take visitors to a page with a simple search function for instant
document retrieval. Documents will be provided in common formats such as Adobe Acrobat
PDF. This digital archiving will not only increase public access to information, but will also
offer long-term document preservation.
Request:
City requests purchase of Laserfiche° WebLink to easily integrate with the City's current
document management software.
Either a hosted or an in-house model can be utilized for this application. A hosted model is
where data, applications, user and administrator access, payment processing and all
hardware be maintained and housed at the application service provider's site. The City
would be responsible for sending and receiving data to/from the application via a secure file
transfer protocol and mutually agreed upon file format. It is assumed that the transfer would
take place in a mutually agreed upon manner either "attended" by operators or "unattended"
happening automatically. An in-house model is one where all data and servers reside and are
maintained within the City of Dubuque network infrastructure.
The City would be responsible for the "on-going" costs for this project which would include
maintenance, hosting, software licensing and any charges for new or customized features
that may be outside of the scope of the initial project description.
VII. To increase constituents' access to local government by streaming local
government cable access channel CityChannel 8 live to the Internet 24 hours aday/7
days a week and by providing the ability to view archived local government meetings
and programs.
Purpose:
To provide citizens and other constituents the ability to view a live stream of the City's cable
access channel as well as archived local government meetings and programs, including
Dubuque City Council meetings and work sessions, beyond the limitations of local cable
television broadcasts. Archived meetings and programs will be made available by streaming
media files live over the Internet. Furthermore, archived meetings will be made available as
searchable, indexed archives that can be used for efficient, long-term record keeping. A
solution that incorporates a significant amount of automation will minimize City staff time
necessary to use the solution on an ongoing basis.
Background:
Currently, citizens are invited to attend local government meetings, such as City Council
meetings and work sessions and Zoning Advisory Commission meetings, or they can view
them live on CityChannel 8, the local government access channel on Dubuque's cable
television system. These programs are by far the most-viewed programs on the channel and
are aired multiple times after their initial live broadcast.
Because CityChannel 8 is only available on Dubuque's cable television system, citizens who
subscribe to satellite television services and those who only watch over-the-air broadcasts do
not have access to Dubuque's local government meetings and City-originated programming.
However, upon request, the City of Dubuque Cable Television Division does provide DVD
copies of meetings and programs at a cost of $10 per disc.
As part of a broad City of Dubuque web site enhancement project, the City of Dubuque will
"webcast" or stream the audio and video output of CityChannel 8 to the Internet, index and
archive live government meetings for future viewing and reference, and archive other
programs for future viewing. This will provide constituents access to local government
programming and information at any time from any computer with high-speed Internet
access.
In addition to providing live and future access of this information to non-cable subscribing
Dubuque citizens, it will provide live and "on-demand" access to other interested parties who
are outside the Dubuque area.
9
The availability of searchable archives allows not only viewing of any meeting or work
session-, but also any section of a meeting to be retrieved at any time using a simple keyword
search. In addition, documents like staff reports, agendas, and minutes can be synchronized
and linked, all of which will be available through the City's web site. Integration with the City's
Laserfiche storage system will facilitate the availability of these documents while minimizing
staff time.
The City wishes to purchase software to stream live programming of CityChannel 8 and
encode and archive local government meetings and programs for subsequent viewing on
demand by the public and City staff.
The software makes live streaming and archiving a simple, hands-off process. It should be a
full-featured software application to access, archive, keyword search, index, and integrate
rich-media such as documents and slides into webcasts. The encoding software schedules
live events, automatically publishes to the web, indexes in real-time, presents slides, includes
closed captioning, and automatically archives and transfers files to the distribution server.
The ideal solution will be functional, easy to use for both the public and City staff, and require
minimal staff time to operate on an ongoing basis by incorporating provisions including, but
not limited to, off-site hosting to minimize the use of City network resources and bandwidth, a
web interface that matches the design of the City's website, and the ability to interface with
the City's Laserfiche document archival system to facilitate the on-line availability of
documents.
ACCESSIBILITY
The proposal shall include components and features designed to enable access and use of
the website by persons with vision, hearing, or other disabilities. As the website is designed
and launched, the contractor shall assure that it is in compliance with current requirements of
the Americans With Disabilities Act, with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Amendments Act
of 1998 and with Electronic and Information Technology Standards adopted by the
Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (reference 36 CFR Part 1194).
PROPOSAL DOCUMENT SUBMISSION
Vendors should be careful to completely read the requirements and description of this
proposal. All inquiries concerning this RFP should be submitted in writing via a-mail to
Chris Kohlmann, Information Services Manager ckohlmanCa~cityofdubugue.orq
Proposals (an original, 1 copy and 1 CD containing the information from the proposal)
must be received by 3:00 pm on April 4, 2008 in the City Clerk's Office located at City
Hall, 50 W. 13th Street, Dubuque, IA. Vendors should insure that their proposals arrive
at the correct location on or before the stated deadline. Late proposals or proposals
delivered to the incorrect location will not be considered and will automatically be
disqualified from further consideration.
io
Proposals shall be submitted in sealed packages marked "Website Proposal." It is anticipated
that a contract for services will be awarded during May 2008.
All proposal information should be contained in the written material submitted. Oral
presentations will not be permitted. However, equipment demonstrations will be required
after the initial evaluation process in order to clarify operating characteristics or acquaint the
City with system features prior to final selection.
Vendors should be aware that the successful vendor will be required to agree to all
representations, commitments, and warranties presented in their proposal. The order of
precedence of the contract shall be: proposer's signed contract, written response to
follow-up questions, addenda, response to the RFP, and the RFP itself. The written
response to follow-up questions, addenda, response to the RFP, and the RFP itself will
become appendices to the main signed contract.
All vendors will be required to attend either live or via conference call a proposal
meeting scheduled for March 11, 2008 1:30 pm Conference Room A City Hall. Indicate
to Chris Kohlmann, Information Services Manager ckohlman(o~cityofdubugue.org 563-
589-4281 by S:OOpm March 10, 2008 whether you will be attending in-person or via
conference call.
System Requirements
All proposed components of the system must be demonstrable at the time of proposal
submission and must be in production. Maintenance, system and software support must be
provided as part of the contract or through a third-party arrangement and must be included as
one of the items in the cost summary. All items submitted in the proposal must be fully
supported by the manufacturer/vendor. The selected vendor will be required to assume all
responsibility for delivery, installation, testing of all software and support services offered in
their proposal(s) whether or not the vendor is the producer or manufacturer.
Vendors will be allowed to submit "a la cart" proposals -proposing on any or all of the
components of the RFP.
Contract Duration and Price Changes
The City is seeking amulti-year agreement with all conversion, application, hosting and
maintenance services included as part of the costs proposed. At no point will pricing be
allowed to rise above stated contract. Devices and additional services may be added during
this time.
Addenda
Addenda are any graphic or written instruments issued by the City of Dubuque prior to the
date for receipt of proposals which modify or interpret this document by additions, deletions,
clarifications, or corrections. Addenda will be mailed or faxed to all who are known to have
received documents. No addenda will be issued later than March 28, 2008 except an
addendum postponing or withdrawing the request for proposal.
it
Posting of Responses to Questions and Addenda
This RFP as well as responses to all questions and addenda will be placed as they are
received on the City of Dubuque website located at www.cityofdubuque.org under the
Bids/RFP section of the Department drop-down menu.
Exceptions
Exceptions to any part of the requirements stated in this request must be clearly identified as
exceptions in the submitted proposal.
Confidentiality of Information
Any submitted information considered trade secret or confidential to the proposer, or
rendered via anon-disclosure agreement with the City must be so labeled and enclosed
separately.
The proposer, the City of Dubuque and their agents will hold the submitted proposal and any
related materials in confidence if so requested by the proposer. Throughout the evaluation
process any information therein will not be made available to any other party unless
precluded by Iowa State Code. No debriefings or scoring sheets will be released before final
recommendation.
However, after the award, all contents of the selected proposal will be considered public
information.
All proposal material supplied, including supporting material and information disclosed during
the proposal evaluation process, will become the property of the City of Dubuque and will be
retained for internal use. The City of Dubuque reserves the right to retain all proposals
submitted and to use any ideas in a proposal regardless of whether that proposal is selected.
Submission of a proposal indicates acceptance by the proposer of the conditions contained in
this request for proposal, unless clearly and specifically noted in the proposal submitted and
confirmed in the contract between the City of Dubuque and the vendor selected.
Insurance
Please see Appendix A for Insurance Requirements.
Incurring Costs
The City of Dubuque is not liable for any costs incurred with replying to this RFP.
Caution to Proposers
The City of Dubuque is not responsible for locating or securing any information which is not
identified in the RFP and reasonably available to the City of Dubuque. Vendors are
encouraged to ask questions to clarify items in this RFP that may need clarification.
Proposal Withdrawals
All requests to withdraw or resubmit a proposal must be made in writing to the City of
Dubuque any time prior to the time of the proposal opening.
12
No proposer may withdraw a proposal within 60 days after the actual date of the opening
thereof.
Proposal Clarification Questions
After reviewing all proposals received in response to this RFP, the City of Dubuque may
develop a list of clarification questions to be addressed by the Vendor. The City of Dubuque
will send these questions to the Vendor for clarification. The Vendor shall provide a response
to the City within five (5) working days following receipt of the inquiry.
Evaluation Criteria
This RFP is not meant to favor any vendor. Instead, it is designed to meet the needs of the
City of Dubuque. The City of Dubuque will weigh the proposals based on the proposer's
references, qualifications and support as well as technical merit and cost. Award will not be
made on price alone.
A "short-list" of vendors meeting the desired criteria will be compiled. Vendors making the
"short-list" will be asked to come on-site to provide a presentation of their solution. Interviews
are currently scheduled to occur April 16 - 17, 2008.
In awarding the Contract, the City will take into consideration the proposer's skill, facilities,
capacity, experience, responsibility, previous work record, financial standing, the necessity of
prompt and efficient completion of work described in the proposal documents, or other factors
the City of Dubuque considers relevant. Inability of proposer to meet these conditions may
be cause for rejection of the proposal.
The City is seeking a solution that best addresses the needs outlined in this RFP. Vendors
may respond " a' la cart' " to items identified in this proposal.
Vendors may partner to achieve the total solution requested and such partnerships and sub-
contracting relationships should be clearly identified in the proposal response. One vendor
must be identified as the primary, proposing vendor for the portion of the proposal they are
responding.
Proposal Acceptance
The City of Dubuque reserves the right to acceptor reject any or all proposals and waive
formalities or irregularities in the process. A proposal once submitted shall be deemed final
and binding on the proposer, and shall constitute an option with the City of Dubuque to enter
into a contract upon the terms set forth in the proposal. All proposal prices must be valid for
60 days from proposal due date.
Proposal Award
Unless otherwise indicated in the specification for a proposal, the City of Dubuque reserves
the right to award the proposal in whole or in part, by item or by group of items where such
action serves the best interests of the City of Dubuque.
13
Contract Negotiations
The City of Dubuque reserves the right to negotiate a contract after the successful proposer
is selected. Selection will be based only on the proposal and subsequent interviews, if any;
therefore, proposals must be complete.
Contract Documents
The proposer's response to this RFP, response to questions and written addenda will
become part of the contractual documents upon signing of contract documents. The order of
precedence shall be signed contract, response to follow-up questions, response to addenda
and response to the RFP. The most recently dated response to an item will supersede other
items referencing the same topic.
Fees and Compensation
Provide a proposed lump sum budget for completion of the proposed scope of services with
cost breakdowns by scope element. The vendor will be progressively paid for work
completed plus materials delivered on site, subject to the agreed upon Not-to-Exceed amount
as written in the signed contract. Invoices shall be paid on a monthly basis. The City will
withhold a 5% contingency amount until 30 continuous calendar days of error free operation
of the system has been completed.
Quotation of fees and compensation shall remain firm for a period of at least 90 days from the
RFP submission deadline.
Please separate the proposed budget(s) from the other portion of the RFP submittal. Initial
screening will be done without knowing the vendor's proposed fee for services.
Warranty
Warranty on all systems proposed will begin after successful installation, NOT upon delivery
of the system.
Existing Software, Hardware and Network Operating Environment.
If the proposed system will be expected to reside on servers owned and supported by the
City of Dubuque, the vendor is responsible for verification of all system resources and
operating system, database and communications infrastructure.
Applications which are included in the proposal must be demonstrated on a production basis
before acceptance of the proposed system takes place. No "beta" products shall be proposed
for this project.
Include in the exceptions portion of the proposal any points where the proposed application
packages DO NOT conform to the Functional Requirements included in this RFP.
Security.
14
There must be a secured administrative function provided to maintain and monitor security.
Secure, administrative functionality must exist to maintain users and provide access to users
so that they only have access to those pages that they are given rights. Administrators must
have access to all areas of the website. Administrative functionality should also include an
ability to make modifications to the main page of the site.
Installation and Delivery.
Any materials/equipment shall be delivered to its proper location and installed by the
proposer. During the time between delivery and acceptance, the City of Dubuque cannot be
held liable for any damages to or theft of any components. It will therefore, be the
responsibility of the contractor to obtain insurance against loss, theft and damage.
The maximum allowable time for proposed equipment and system to be installed and
functioning is 90 days from the date of contract acceptance.
The City anticipates the majority of work to be completed by August 29, 2008.
Owner's Responsibilities for Delivery and Installation.
Please identify the exact tasks that the City of Dubuque must perform and/or be responsible
for in order to accomplish the delivery and installation of the system, if any. (Attach separate
sheet labeled "Required Pre-Delivery and Installation Tasks" if needed.) This may include,
but not be limited to server purchases, server and/or workstation operating system upgrades,
software upgrades, client software installations, client hardware upgrades, and acquisition of
analog telephone lines, etc.
Initial Loading.
The selected vendor must agree to provide qualified systems staff to assist in the initial
installation and configuration of the system. The vendor should provide a complete, written
implementation plan and schedule of work to be done prior to commencing any installation of
hardware or software.
Transportation and Installation.
To be responsive, vendors must include the cost of transportation, installation and testing of
equipment on-site. The costs associated with transportation, installation, and testing shall be
given in the cost breakdown.
Format of the Proposal Response
In order to simplify the review process and to obtain the maximum degree of comparability,
the proposal shall include the following items and be organized in the manner specified on
the following pages.
15
A. Letter of Transmittal
A letter of transmittal briefly outlining the vendor's/proposer's understanding of the work shall
be submitted. The transmittal letter should also include general information regarding the
firm and individuals involved.
B. Profile of the Firm
1. Company Name
2. Legal Name (if different)
3. Years in Business
4. Number of years installing systems similar to this proposal
5. Number of sites currently installed using the proposed software
6. Contact Person
7. Full Mailing Address
8. Telephone Number
9. FAX Number
10. E-mail and web site address
11. Number of full-time employees
12. Number of technical/support personnel
13. Number and location of training sites within 30Q miles offering training on the proposed
products.
i6
C. SIGNATURE
The undersigned certifies he/she is authorized to obligate the represented firm
and further agrees with all terms, conditions, and requirements of the City of
Dubuque's Request for Proposal.
Firm Name
Address
Phone
Signature
Title
Date
Contract Addenda Received (if any)
D. Proposed Solution
In this section, the vendor must fully describe the proposed solution(s) for
addressing the functional requirements requested. This should include all
description and version of software, specific system capabilities, any special
needs, environmental and other relevant requirements for operation of the
proposed solution.
E. References
To be a qualified proposer, the vendor must include below three references with
similar systems installed within the last 3 years. Preference will be given to
vendors with references for implementations at organizations most similar to the
City of Dubuque. References will be contacted -please verify information before
submitting.
Reference #1
Organization Name
Address
Type of Business
Contact Person
Telephone and Fax #s
Secondary Contact Person
Secondary Contact phone and Fax #s
i~
Dates of Installation
Description of system
Reference #2
Organization Name
Address
Type of Business
Contact Person
Telephone and Fax #'s
Secondary Contact Person
Secondary Contact phone and Fax #s
Dates of Installation
Description of system
Reference #3
Organization Name
Address
Type of Business
Contact Person
Telephone and Fax #'s
Secondary Contact Person
Secondary Contact phone and Fax #s
Dates of Installation
Description of system
F. Costs
A cost breakdown of all components of the installation including software,
training, initial loading assistance, transportation, and installation shall be a
separate section of the proposal. Individual components and line item pricing are
to be included here. Version numbers if applicable must be included.
Costs should be included in a separate envelope labeled "Costs for
Website Proposal.
G. Other Features.
to
The vendor should have more than five (5) years experience in selling,
developing, training and installing the quoted systems. The vendor must
warranty the applications to perform as specified and include length of warranty.
A copy of the proposed written warranty should be included in the proposal
response. The vendor should document all applications so that they are
understandable to City personnel. The vendor shall provide evidence of
documentation, the number of copies of documentation included with this
proposal and charges for additional copies.
H. Exceptions.
The vendor should list any exceptions taken with items or terms required in this
proposal.
i9