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IT director warns FY2026 hardware replacement and subscription costs will rise
Summary
The city's IT director told the Finance Committee the department needs a substantial desktop replacement and is facing rising recurring software subscription costs, including for Munis, Mimecast and disaster-recovery services.
The Gardner IT director told the Finance Committee May 29 that information-technology hardware replacement and recurring subscription software costs are the principal reasons his department's FY2026 request increases.
IT Director Keith (role: IT Director) explained the hardware line will rise because many desktop machines are now more than a decade old and require replacement to support modern, secure operating systems. He said, "The big change coming up in the next fiscal year is replacing a lot of desktops," and described how subscription software costs have grown: an historical Munis bill that was about $50,000 a year is now approaching $120,000 a year as the city adds new modules (utility billing, payroll changes and other Munis projects).
Why it matters: IT recurring costs are typically multi-year commitments; replacing aging equipment and funding enterprise software subscriptions affects general-fund recurring obligations and departmental service continuity.
Key details - Hardware refresh: The IT director said desktops that were deferred for years now need replacement; desktop lifecycle assumptions used are roughly four years for laptops/PCs and longer for network hardware, but many local desktops are well past recommended replacement cycles. - Subscriptions and new services: The city recently adopted Mimecast for email security (new recurring cost indicated at about $25,000 a year) and Rubrik for disaster recovery; Munis subscription fees are rising due to expanded municipal projects. - Paper and printing reductions: IT and other departments are pursuing paperless steps and printer default settings (two-sided and black-and-white defaults) to reduce overall printing costs.
Operational notes and follow-up - IT will continue to evaluate subscriptions and remove unused services where possible; staff said the Munis projects (utility billing, payroll changes) will add to the recurring Munis cost as modules come online.
Ending - The committee asked IT to continue tracking subscriptions and to provide further detail on specific hardware replacement schedules and the Munis cost trajectory.
