Monessen Mayor Mosher and council members debated whether to proceed with a security and fire alarm upgrade after staff discovered a purchase order (PO) included a multi‑year monitoring contract with Guardian rather than a single repair or equipment purchase.

The issue surfaced when staff and council compared three proposals for alarm and monitoring service from Guardian, ADT and Comcast for the police station and, separately, the civic center. Police Chief Heppel and other staff participated in the vendor review. Council members said they were surprised to learn that the PO tied the city to an initial five‑year term with automatic renewal clauses.

City staff said they had sought quotes because the existing fire system was no longer serviceable and an upgrade was needed. According to staff, Guardian’s proposal included a one‑time installation price (appearing in the packet as $8,048.24 for the police station) and an ongoing monitoring/inspection component; staff later identified a separate line‑item total of $12,745 for a package that includes monitoring and related services. Staff told council they have asked Guardian (via Richard Thomas, the Guardian contact) whether the initial term could be shortened and whether renewal periods could be reduced to annual renewals.

Council members pressed staff on process and notice. Several members said the project began as an $8,000 equipment/installation request but had grown to include long‑term monitoring and other services; those additional recurring charges had not been highlighted for council before the PO was entered. Staff acknowledged the packet included both the contract and older proposal pages from August 2024 and agreed to provide the full set of vendor quotes, clarify which prices apply to which building, and confirm the scope that triggered the PO.

Chief Heppel and staff emphasized that the building houses prisoners, secured documents and critical police equipment and that the city has repeatedly operated without a reliable alarm system, creating liability concerns. Staff said a monitoring/inspection line in the Guardian proposal included the annual testing the fire marshal expects and that vendors had different approaches: Guardian proposed using existing wiring and upgrading the controller (less invasive), while other vendors proposed full rewires that would be costlier.

Council did not vote to move the contract forward at the work session. Members asked for additional information — the full set of bids/quotes, confirmation of which package corresponds to which building, documentation of the purchase order and the proposed contract language, and whether the city can limit the contract term and monitoring options. Staff said they would supply the missing pages and schedule the item for further action at a future meeting.

Ending: Council members instructed staff to gather the remaining proposals and clarify the monitoring fees and contract terms before any motion to approve installation or ongoing service is placed on the council agenda.