Administrative Services Committee (fka IT/Telecom Committee)

ITT COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES 2/15/18 7:30 a.m. Annex Building Meeting called to order at 7:30 a.m. Attendees: Justin Chandler, Tom Stoughton, Melody Bobbitt, Mark Starr, Scott Snyder, Donna Wood, David Scheffler, Paul Martin and Holly Miller‐Downour Old Business  Status of the federally mandated Narrowbanding project – Tom Stoughton provided a background around the $800K spend from the General Fund, Fire Impact Fund, 911 and Capital Improvement Funds. Mark Starr provided some general information on what Narrowbanding actually was (keeping the frequency in a smaller window or band). Mark Starr confirmed that the actual Narrowbanding has been done within the last 2‐3 years, but the next step of moving from analog to digital was just being completed and the next step would be to encrypt the signal. There was also a digital recorder purchased.  Status of the upgrading police and fire radios – The total move from analog to digital is scheduled to be completed on 2/15/18.  Status of the fiber optics upgrades/installation(s) begun several years ago – Mark Starr provided the update that the Fiber Optics project is 99% completed with every city department being done except for the wellfield which has been scheduled to be completed. There is also a repair underway for the one radio site on Shasta Drive which was due to AEP cutting the line when a telephone pole was replaced and is expected to be completed within the next week. Another Fiber Optic project is a joint project with the county to install and pair fiber optics at the National Meter site. The county will pay the city an installation charge along with a recurring monthly charge. It was also mentioned that some of the areas are too far from the city to have the fiber optics installed. For example, the Mt. Zion Reservoir uses a point to point wireless.  Development of a Sort Program – This was discussed but in order to develop the program, it would require a new system for the Tax Department. Currently the Auditor’s office is looking into a new software program and depending on the outcome of Senate Bill 49, the same system could be used for the Tax Dept. A demo is currently scheduled for March 1.  Explore merging the Clerk of Courts and City IT departments – A good discussion was held regarding this item. Mark Starr indicated he would be willing to consider an absorption rather than a merger. This will continue to be reviewed.  Assessment of exactly where Lancaster is on the “technology curve.” – Mark Starr indicated that on a scale of 1‐10, Lancaster would fall somewhere in the middle. Some items where we do stand above other areas would be the Body Cameras along with the Fiber Optics. The delinquencies would be the following: o Payroll & Finance Program for the City o More cloud based services  o Back‐up & Redundancy o Cyber Security o Password Security New Business  911 Upgrade – The 911 software system is currently an analog system that will no longer be supported by the manufacturer. This software will need to be upgraded to a digital system and will cost approximately $102K which was included in the budget for 2018. This is slated for late summer or early fall of 2018. The team is in the process of reviewing the current supplier as well as other potential suppliers.  There are currently three 911 Centers in the county (Lancaster, Fairfield County and Pickerington) – need to look at creating efficiencies and possibly consolidating them.  Need to look at the possibility of using VDI rather than continually replacing desktops and laptops. This has been considered, however, each department with the current structure is responsible for their own systems. Need to look at the overall structure.  As a part of the discussion of Lancaster’s technology, many departments do their own “thing” when it comes to technology which is not aligned with having a City IT department. The IT department should drive the technology strategy with input and alignment from key functional area stakeholders and complete concurrence (of the strategy) and support from the City administration. It makes no sense for one department to plan to replace and use PC’s when a VDI client at half the cost would accomplish the same work. It makes no sense to have a programmer in the Utilities department that cannot be used on other city data related programming projects. A technology road map for the entire city should dictate the direction and spend for IT related applications, hardware and services. Review of the following: (Due to the time allotted for the meeting, the committee did not get to review the below and will review at the next meeting)  Projects 1‐23‐18  5‐Year Plan Outline City of Lancaster 2018‐2022 Motion to adjourn made by Melody Bobbitt and seconded by Tom Stoughton – meeting adjourned at 8:35 a.m. Next meeting will be April 19, 2018 at 7:30 a.m. in the Annex Building Conference Room