The Schertz Civic Center was built in 2006 as part of a CO bond from 2004. The facility cost $3 million to build and is currently being used for rental space and office space for Public Affairs staff. Since it was built, there have not been any major upgrades to the Audio-Visual (“A/V”) system in the facility. The main rental facility includes two rooms – the Bluebonnet Hall and the Grand Ballroom. Both rooms host events throughout the year and attract out-of-town conferences and conventions from across the state. Staff and customers experience problems with the outdated A/V system as it is not compatible with current technology, it is not reliable, and it does not fit the need of the facility, especially when it is booked for conferences and conventions.
At the October 23, 2018 City Council meeting staff presented an overview of the Civic Center operations which outlined budgeted expenses, annual revenues, cost recovery information, and proposed operational changes that would work toward improving efficiencies and realizing cost savings. Staff also indicated that they had gone out for bid for A/V upgrades but would be bringing that item back to Council in November to reject the bids.
In November 2018 staff came to Council to reject the bids the city received for A/V upgrades for the Civic Center. At the time, Staff had anticipated the cost to be $50,000; however, as the system had not been upgraded since the facility was built in 2006, staff discovered the bids came in significantly higher and that upgrading the whole system to current technology would cost $200,000 - $250,000. At the time, staff’s focus was on making the above-mentioned operational changes to improve efficiencies and close the gap on cost recovery. During the conversation with Council it was discussed that the City’s hotel occupancy tax (“HOT”) funds could be an avenue as a funding source for the A/V system upgrade. Staff also stated that while they do not anticipate improvements to the A/V system generating any additional revenue, an investment into the facility needs to be made and the current system needs to be upgraded. Staff indicated this item would be revisited in 2019 once time had been taken to implement and evaluate the operational changes.
On the July 9, 2019 City Council agenda, staff provided an Informational Item regarding Civic Center Updates. Staff indicated they had received approval from Management, Finance and Legal to use HOT funds for the A/V upgrades and were currently moving forward with Purchasing for this project.
A Request for Quote (“RFQ”) was posted to the BuyBoard website inviting vendors with Buyboard Contracts to submit a proposal for the A/V upgrades at the Civic Center. The RFQ was posted June 4, 2019 with a response deadline of June 21, 2019. Vendors were given an opportunity to visit the Civic Center prior to providing a submission. Five responses were received for the RFQ and all five vendors were invited to meet with Civic Center and IT staff to discuss their proposed system. Upon completion of the vendor presentations, the field was narrowed to two vendors. Civic Center and IT staff then went on site visits to view project locations completed by each vendor, to see their equipment, and to talk to the end-users about their experience with the vendors and the installment process. After evaluating the proposed equipment, pricing, presentations, and site visits, an award to Summit Integration Systems was recommended.
Summit Integration Systems is a contracted vendor with BuyBoard. This group purchasing cooperative gives public entities the advantage of leveraging the cooperative’s ability to obtain bulk discounts by utilizing contracts that were competitively procured by other entities, combined with the ease of online, web-based shopping and ordering. Purchases under cooperative programs meet the requirements under the Texas Local Government Purchasing Code rule for cooperative purchases as adopted by the City of Schertz Resolution 11-R-41 on August 30, 2011.
Under Section 351.101 (a)(1) Use of Tax Revenue in Texas Local Government Code, this project is qualified to use the City’s HOT fund and is budgeted in the FY 19-20 budget. Once approved, the estimated timeline for the project is about 45 days, based on Civic Center room availability. Civic Center staff will work with Summit Integration Systems to schedule time on the room calendar of the facilities. Additionally, electrical work will be needed to complete the project, but staff does not anticipate high costs for this and will work with Purchasing separate from this scope of work to procure the power needs with an electrician.
The scope of work and quote provided by Summit Integration Systems is $215,150. Given the age of the facility and the unknown of what may be discovered during the complete upgrade, staff is adding a City controlled contingency of $20,000 for a total not to exceed amount of $235,150. |