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Aurora police recommend Mark43 to replace dispatch and records systems; estimated $3.5 million over five years
Summary
Commander Brian Handel told the council the police department selected Mark43 as the preferred vendor for both the computer-aided dispatch and records management systems after an RFP process; staff estimates approximately $3.5 million over five years, to be funded from multiple sources and returned to council for contract approval.
At the April 8 Aurora City Council meeting, Administrative Services Bureau Commander Brian Handel briefed the council on a planned replacement of the city’s computer-aided dispatch (CAD) and records management system (RMS). After an extended procurement and demo process, staff recommended Mark43 as the preferred vendor.
"Those systems are vital to the public safety here in Aurora," Handel told the council, explaining why the city began a search for a new system. He said the current vendor, Hexagon, has provided the incumbent CAD/RMS since 2015 but the product is now at end-of-life and many promised features were never delivered. A department survey showed 78% of respondents were very or somewhat dissatisfied with the current RMS, Handel said.
The city ran a multi-stage selection process. Marketplace City managed the RFPs; the city received 10 responses, and the process included initial online demos, in-person eight-hour vendor demonstrations, on-site three-day labs and site visits to other agencies. Two vendor approaches were identified as viable finalists: a Tyler CAD paired with an Axon RMS (combined five-year price approximately $5,300,000) and Mark43 providing both CAD and RMS (approximate five-year price $3,500,000). Handel said feedback from on-site labs and site visits was “overwhelmingly positive” toward Mark43, and the single-vendor approach offered a more integrated CAD–RMS workflow.
Handel outlined funding options the city is pursuing, including asset forfeiture funds, the emergency telephone system fund and the city’s general fund; he also said grants may be pursued to offset costs. The Mark43 pricing would be paid in annual installments (Handel estimated roughly $600,000 per year across five years), rather than a single upfront payment.
No contract was before the council for approval on April 8. Handel said the purpose of the presentation was to update the council and noted staff plans to return in the coming months with a formal contract and financing package for council consideration. Council members asked no substantive questions at the presentation.
The procurement team involved personnel from the police, fire and IT departments; Handel emphasized that the selection team differed from staff who originally purchased the incumbent system in 2015.
