CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED:
title
Option A. Approve the award of RFP 25-030, Citywide Camera Access, to SDI Presence LLC, for an amount not to exceed $8,689,094.02, plus a 3% contingency and for a three-year term for a new security network, comprehensive replacement, upgrade, and addition of building access control equipment and cameras, managed service provider services, and new cameras identified in both Category 1 and Category 2; or
Option B. Approve the award of RFP 25-030, Citywide Camera Access, to SDI Presence LLC, for an amount not to exceed $8,189,320.02, plus a 3% contingency and for a three-year term for a new security network, comprehensive replacement, upgrade, and addition of building access control equipment and cameras, managed service provider services, and new cameras identified in Category 1, and to defer Category 2 cameras to future budget years subject to City Council review
body
DEPARTMENT: Police Department
SUBMITTED BY: Jason Arres, Police Chief; Jen Louden, TED Director; Jackie Nguyen, Information Technology Director; Dan Randolph, Public Works Director; and Kelley Neal, Solutions Project Manager, Information Technology Department
BOARD/COMMISSION REVIEW:
On September 1, 2026, the City Council voted 6-2 to deny the contract award for RFP 25-030, Citywide Camera Access.
During the discussion, Council members raised questions regarding project costs, the breakdown of replacement versus new cameras, and the specific locations proposed for installation. Additionally, the Council emphasized the need for a comprehensive governance policy to regulate requests, access permissions, and review protocols.
Under City Council Rule 4.13.6, a rejected item cannot be reconsidered or reviewed again within 62 days. During this mandatory waiting period, staff met with all members of the City Council, itemized replacement versus new cameras, detailed the proposed locations, clarified that the proposal is for 95 fewer new cameras than the consultant recommendation, and drafted the requested governance policy.
Having fulfilled the waiting period requirement, staff is now resubmitting this item for reconsideration on November 4, 2026.
BACKGROUND:
Current Camera and Building Security Systems
The City’s three current security systems have been in place since the early 2010s. They include 400 building access card readers and 442 cameras (432 security and ten traffic). Video monitoring is divided between two separate networks that support police investigations, traffic operations, and utility site monitoring. Meanwhile, the building access system manages entry and maintains access records to most municipal facilities.
The infrastructure supporting all three systems is nearing the end of its useful life. Storage capacity is limited and the systems lack scalability for future expansion as well as many features available in modern security platforms. As a result, staff has fewer tools to review events, manage access, and coordinate security operations.
Project History
To assess the City’s needs and plan a strategic replacement of the systems, the Building Access and Security Camera Project Team, comprised of staff from the City Manager’s Office, the Police, Information Technology, Human Resources, Transportation, Engineering and Development, Electric Utility, and Public Works departments wrote specifications and submitted RFP 230-072 to the City Council.
On May 7, 2024, the City Council awarded RFP 23-072, Citywide Camera Consultant, to Ghafari Associates, LLC.
Ghafari’s scope of work included:
• documenting existing conditions and assessing overall needs,
• assisting with the preparation of the request for proposals for the installation vendor,
• supporting proposal evaluation, vendor selection, and contract negotiations, and
• providing implementation support.
Evaluation of Current Status and Proposed Solution
As part of the initial assessment, Ghafari and City staff surveyed more than 130 City buildings and public areas to audit current security and building access as well as evaluate potential security improvements. The review considered the operations and varying security needs of each facility. For example, the Municipal Center and Naper Settlement are open to the public and host events and meetings. Utility and public safety facilities house critical infrastructure, are not open to the public, and require secure environments.
Based on these findings, Ghafari initially recommended adding 350 cameras to improve visual coverage in key areas and 98 door access points to strengthen security at critical municipal locations.
Ghafari also designed a comprehensive, unified security network architecture for citywide video monitoring and building access control. This design integrates the City’s separate security camera networks, access control system, and traffic camera system into a single, modern, centralized solution.
Notably, the design isolates video and security data traffic from the City’s primary day-to-day data network. This separation enhances overall cybersecurity and provides the dedicated bandwidth necessary for high-volume video storage and future growth. The system architecture also includes new servers, storage and network equipment to replace outdated infrastructure to support the system.
This transition to a modern, unified platform provides City staff with advanced tools to effectively support public safety, police investigations, traffic management, and facility security. New features include, but are not limited to, a centralized dashboard, real-time visual verification, event-triggered alerts, and individualized building and camera access settings. These tools are intended to help staff review events more quickly, manage access more effectively, and seamlessly coordinate security functions across City facilities.
The City selected an on-premises system to ensure data security remains entirely within its internal network while managing long-term costs. Cloud storage is highly expensive for data-intensive applications of this scale. Furthermore, a cloud-based solution would require significantly higher internet throughput to continuously transfer large volumes of data.
City Response and Refinement
Following a comprehensive review of Ghafari’s recommendations with staff from all departments, the 350 new camera proposal was reduced to 255 across 92 buildings / locations.
In addition to replacing 200 end-of-life security cameras, the 255 new cameras have been categorized into two strategic tiers for deployment. Detailed building and itemized camera counts can be found in Attachment 1.
1. Category 1 - Critical Public and Infrastructure Safety
a. 154 new cameras dedicated to City infrastructure and high-traffic public areas
2. Category 2 - Public and Staff Safety
a. 101 new cameras focusing on day-to-day security of visitors and municipal staff
RFP Requirements and Project Scope
After the assessment and network design, City staff and Ghafari documented the project requirements to execute the proposed installation (RFP 25-030).
The project scope includes:
• building a standalone fiber network for the security system,
• supplying and installing the servers, network equipment and storage needed to support the system,
• replacing 200 end-of-life cameras,
• adding 255 new cameras for strategic coverage,
• replacing 400 end-of-life building access control readers,
• adding 98 building access control readers,
• applying multifactor authentication at the City’s most critical access points,
• integrating the City’s existing cameras and access control equipment into a unified platform (Genetec),
• configuring Genetec to meet operational needs and training staff on its use, and
• providing ongoing managed services to support the security system.
Managed Services Model and Responsibilities
During the project planning process, City staff and Ghafari identified a managed service model as the preferred approach for ongoing technical support. Under this model, a third-party provider is responsible for the 24/7 technical support and monitoring of the security network. These responsibilities include:
• continuous system configuration and system-health monitoring,
• camera and access panel maintenance,
• software patching, updates, and network support and
• assistance and training for system users.
This model provides the City with access to specialized technical expertise and ensures proactive system maintenance, improved system reliability, and predictable ongoing support costs. Additionally, it reduces the technical support burden on staff in the Information Technology Department and maximizes use of the system’s capabilities as technology evolves.
Privacy and System Use
To balance physical security needs with individual privacy, City staff has drafted a policy to govern how the system is used. The policy establishes strict rules for system access, data management, and approval of requests for video footage and searches including how the system’s analytical functions are to be used. These requirements are intended to make use of the system consistent and auditable, limit unauthorized access or disclosure, and respect the privacy expectations of employees and the public while still allowing the system to support legitimate security needs.
DISCUSSION:
On October 6, 2025, the City’s Camera and Access Project Team issued RFP 25-030, Citywide Camera Access, seeking qualified vendors to fulfil the RFP requirements and serve as the City’s Managed Service Provider.
Proposals were received from the following vendors:
|
SDI Presence LLC |
Umbrella Security Systems |
|
Minuteman Security Technologies |
Pace |
|
Scientel Solutions LLC |
Imperial Surveillance Inc |
|
Low Voltage Solutions Inc |
CelPlan Technologies |
A selection team comprised of staff from the City Manager’s Office, Police, Information Technology, Human Resources, Transportation, Engineering and Development, Electric Utility, and Public Works departments evaluated the proposals, and were scored based upon the criteria outlined in the RFP:
1. Capability, Capacity and Qualifications of the Proposer (25%)
2. Suitability and Quality of the Approach (45%)
3. Milestones and Deliverables (30%)
After reviewing and scoring the proposals, the selection committee invited the top three vendors, SDI Presence LLC, Minuteman Security Technologies and Scientel Solutions LLC, to attend interviews. Following the completion of the interviews, the selection committee rescored the vendors.
|
Vendor |
Qualification Score |
|
SDI Presence LLC |
82.7 |
|
Scientel Solutions LLC |
77.3 |
|
Minuteman Security Technologies |
70.55 |
Pricing was then requested from the top three firms, based on the current scope of the solicitation. Pricing was then factored into scoring, using Price per Quality Point. This took the pricing proposed by each proposer and divided that by the proposer’s interview score (final scoring before pricing) to yield a point value. This point value was then added to the final scoring, giving a final Qualification Score.
|
Vendor Qualification Score |
|
|
SDI Presence LLC |
115,807 |
|
Scientel Solutions LLC |
106,759 |
|
Minuteman Security Technologies |
102,376 |
The vendor with the highest qualification score, SDI Presence LLC, is recommended for the award. The vendor is also RBO-qualified for the procurement of construction services, as defined by Section 1-9B-7 of the Procurement Code.
SDI Presence LLC was chosen because of its superiority in the following areas:
1. Attention to detail in all facets of the review and interview process
2. Experience with security systems in large complexes
3. Focus on being a service organization - clear attention on Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and ability to provide the City with high-quality service
4. Partnering with City known entity, ADT, to support buildout, and provide confidence
5. Excellent references including the Chicago Department of Aviation for O’Hare and Midway Airports, FedEx, and the Chicago Bears Football Club
6. Provided clear proposals on equipment choices to drive decisions by the City
This award includes two components, 1) the initial capital costs to construct and implement the system, and 2) the ongoing Managed Services covering ownership, system maintenance and support. The cost allocations and details of each component are as follows:
For both Option A and Option B: Capital construction and implementation costs of $6,500,454.02 include:
1. Wiring and equipment to implement a stand-alone fiber network
2. Servers, switches and storage to support security and surveillance network
3. 200 new cameras to replace existing cameras that have reached end of life
4. 154 new Category 1 cameras
5. 400 new access control panels to replace outdated security panels
6. 98 new access control panels to improve access control at City facilities
7. Badging hardware and supplies
8. 10% hardware sparing
9. All wiring and equipment to support the new cameras and access control elements
10. Licensing for Genetec Security System
11. Genetec Clearance digital evidence management system licensing for three years
12. Genetec Advantage five-year program for Omnicast maintenance and support contract for cameras
13. Genetec Advantage five-year program for Synergis maintenance and lifecycle management for access control readers
14. Labor for Implementation
For Option A: Capital construction and implementation adds an additional cost of $499,774.00 which includes:
• 101 new Category 2 cameras
• Labor for Category 2 camera implementation
Post-implementation support and maintenance costs of $1,688,866 include:
1. Three years post implementation Managed Service of entire system
a. Year 1 - $565,522.00
b. Years 2 & 3 - $561,672.00
City staff reviewed the initial pricing proposal for Managed Services and proposed alternate levels of support and SLA requirements. Through a negotiation process with SDI Presence, the price for Managed Services was reduced by 40%.
The term of this initial contract is for three years from the date of contract execution to November 4, 2029, with two, two-year options to extend. Managed Services support will begin upon successful implementation of the Genetec Security System.
FISCAL IMPACT:
CIPs - LR076 and CE165
Citywide camera access is expensed to the Technology account listed below. The expenses associated with this award are aligned with two capital projects LR076 (the security camera upgrade) and CE165 (the door access system upgrade). Given the coordination of these two upgrades staff will be combining this in one capital project moving forward. The total budget for these combined projects is $8.5M split between 2026 and 2027. The 2026 budget included $1.8M for expenses associated with these two projects. The award requested can be accommodated within the 2026 budget and staff will ensure sufficient funding is included in future capital budgets to support the future years associated with this award.
|
Account Number |
Fund Description |
Total Budget Amount |
|
31342200-551504 |
Capital Projects Fund |
$1,800,000 |