Title
Update on the Smart City Initiatives in the Information Technology Strategic Plan and Related City Council Referral; and
Recommendation to Authorize the City Manager to Execute a Service Provider Agreement with Iteris for a Total Aggregate Compensation Not to Exceed $120,000, Including Contingencies, to Develop the Smart City Master Plan and to Seek Additional Grant Funding. (Information Technology 2611).
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
At the September 19, 2017 City Council Meeting, City Council initiated a City Council Referral to investigate options to provide free public WiFi throughout the City of Alameda (City) as part of the Smart City Initiatives in the Information Technology Strategic Plan (2017). With the recent Shelter in Place orders and the need for increased distance learning, the need for available public WiFi has increased.
The City is in the beginning stages of preparing a Smart City Master Plan, and is seeking consultant expertise to develop the Plan. The purpose of this Smart City effort is to guide the City's use of new technology to achieve General Plan goals. The City is in the process of updating the General Plan so the timing is fortuitous, given the evolving nature of technology. Once completed, the City will be in a better position to seek grant funding for implementation.
BACKGROUND
Multiple departments in the City are working together to develop a Smart City Master Plan. During the Shelter in Place order, telecommuting and distance learning increased dramatically in a very short period and transportation patterns shifted drastically without the City being able to comprehensively monitor the new behavior. With online learning likely to continue in some way for the foreseeable future, the City has been working with the Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) to explore ways to address the "digital divide". Specifically, City and AUSD staff have been considering options that wo...
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