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Select Board authorizes RFP for new town website after CivicPlus price increase
Summary
A seven-member website committee drafted an RFP and the Select Board authorized sending it to seven vendors after learning the town’s CivicPlus renewal would nearly double the annual fee; the RFP sets an Aug. 22 proposal deadline and a tentative contract award in October.
The Brookfield Select Board authorized a subcommittee to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for a redesign and implementation of a new municipal website after being told CivicPlus will raise the town’s annual fee.
Jan, who chairs the website subcommittee, said CivicPlus notified the town its pricing would “almost double at the end of this year,” taking the annual fee from about $2,500 to $4,003.58. The subcommittee — which includes staff and several residents — proposed a targeted RFP to seven vendors rather than an open solicitation and asked the board to approve a timeline.
If approved, the RFP would be issued immediately, proposals due by Aug. 22, and public vendor demonstrations scheduled before Sep. 16; the committee expected to make a recommendation to the Select Board by Sep. 16 with a contract award targeted for Oct. 7 to align with board meeting dates. The RFP packet submitted to the board includes vendor requirements, content-management features, a staff feedback summary and a calendar-import capability requested by staff.
Committee members emphasized access to analytics (Google Analytics) and calendar management as priority features; staff reported problems with multiple, conflicting calendars and asked for importable calendar feeds and mobile notifications. The committee also discussed migration timing and recommended avoiding a full site conversion during the town’s busy tax and accounting window from mid-November through mid-January.
The board voted to authorize the RFP issuance with an Aug. 22 deadline. The website committee will remain engaged through demonstrations and implementation support and the town plans to fill a future IT/software position to support the new system.
Ending: The committee will issue the RFP to the seven vendors and return with recommended finalists and implementation considerations for board approval.
