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Tomball ISD board approves $970,156 security upgrade after debate over vendor access
Summary
The Tomball ISD Board of Trustees approved a $970,156 purchase of physical security system upgrades from Preferred Technologies in a 6-1 vote after trustees questioned whether a local parent-vendor had been given an opportunity to bid.
The Tomball Independent School District Board of Trustees approved a $970,156 purchase of physical security system upgrades from Preferred Technologies on Jan. 14, voting 6-1 to accept the recommended Genetec-based solution.
The purchase, described in board materials as a package of access-control and camera upgrades to be funded with bond proceeds, drew questions from trustees about whether a parent who emailed the board had been given an opportunity to bid. Trustee Mark Levandowski said the parent’s note was “compelling” because the writer is a Tomball ISD parent and because the email claimed the parent could “save a substantial amount of money.” Levandowski said he had intended to move to postpone the vote so the board could investigate the claim further, but the motion to approve was already on the floor.
Superintendent Dr. Pratt told the board that the district had requested three quotes from suppliers believed to meet the district’s stated vision and that the procurement was tied to a Genetec software specification. “He is not on the approved vendor list, which would be step number 1,” Dr. Pratt said, noting that becoming an approved vendor is a longer process. She also explained that the administration’s recommendation reflected a preference for an enterprise-grade, unified platform to manage access control and cameras districtwide.
Board members asked whether the parent had submitted an alternative bid; administration said the parent had shared information and reached out but had not submitted a bid for the specified Genetec solution. The superintendent said the district received a “no bid” from one supplier and a higher cost from another, leaving Preferred Technologies as the recommended vendor.
After discussion, the board voted 6-1 to approve the purchase; Trustee Kratky cast the lone vote against the item. No amendment or delay was adopted. The board did not enact any immediate change to procurement policy during the meeting, though a trustee suggested the board could benefit from a procurement refresher in a future session.
The board packet references industry-standard door controller boards and replacement readers from Schlage for the hardware portion of the project. The administration said the platform choice was intended to provide a single interface across campuses for access control (key-fob access) and security cameras to improve staff efficiency and incident response.
The district did not provide further timeline details for installation in the meeting discussion.
