Fostoria to move IT support to Bascom; council urged to fast-track contracts to avoid service gap

FOSTORIA — The Fostoria Finance Committee discussed plans to replace Buckeye IT after the vendor said it will terminate services at month’s end, and committee members recommended adding agreements with Bascom Communications to the city council agenda so the city does not lose IT support.

Finance Director Steve told the committee that the city joined an RFQ process with Seneca County and the City of Tiffin and has opted to contract with Bascom Communications while sharing a new IT technician through Seneca County. "We did partner with Seneca County and the city of Tiffin did an RFQ on that, to find a new service provider," Finance Director Steve said. "The county and city of Tiffin are going in with a company out of Findlay. We have opted to work with Bascom."

The committee heard cost estimates: the county will pick up 50% of the shared technician’s cost, the City of Tiffin 25% and Fostoria 25%; the technician position was budgeted as an additional IT cost of $18,134 in the discussion. Council member Mr. Cassidy said moving quickly was imperative: "This is a very serious matter, and I think a sense of urgency on getting this legislation put in tonight is very important."

Committee members reported a net savings from switching support to Bascom: one member summarized a $7,200 annual savings compared with the prior vendor but said the shared technician adds net cost overall (the $18,134 technician cost minus the Bascom savings yields roughly an $11,000 increase, as presented to the committee). The proposed technician will be a Seneca County employee reporting to the sheriff with "dotted lines" to the commissioners and the participating cities, and will support a shared ProPhoenix 9-1-1/records server used by the three entities.

Committee discussion focused on timing and process. Several members said the contracts should be placed on the council agenda promptly so the city is not without IT support; one council member said the city should be prepared to suspend the usual three-reading rule if necessary. Mayor Monell noted the proposed Bascom service agreement "is very similar to the service agreement that we had with the previous provider." Finance Director Steve said council was first informed of the need for a new IT provider in February and that bids were received in mid-April; he said work on agreements began in May.

During public comment Jill Fillator of 402 West Culberson said she supports resolving the IT gap but voiced concern about transparency: "My concern is the fact that you're not being transparent... You had this great opportunity ... to share with us two months ago that they're bailing out on us and we're gonna have to go with something else." Finance Director Steve responded that council had been informed in February and that the OPWC invoice timing changed the debt amortization figures that required a later appropriation.

The committee did not record a formal council vote on the IT agreements during the meeting; members agreed to recommend adding the two legislative items to the full council agenda for consideration.

The agreements discussed include a 180-day opt-out provision for the shared technician arrangement as presented to the committee. The committee also noted the operational importance of uninterrupted IT support for emergency 9-1-1 systems and police records software.

The council’s Finance Committee will forward the proposed Bascom communications contract and the shared IT technician agreement to the full council for action; no formal contract award was recorded in the committee meeting.