Woods County approves IT services contract, Wi‑Fi upgrades and security cameras for courthouse

Woods County commissioners approved a package of technology upgrades on a motion that covered a new IT services subscription, replacement of courthouse Wi‑Fi access points and a security camera system for a county shed.

The approvals move the county toward a July 1-to-June-30 licensing cycle for software and subscriptions and authorize an initial proration of licensing and one-time setup work to be billed for the period ending June 30.

County staff and a vendor representative discussed three subscription tiers for ongoing IT support. The plans differ mainly in an hourly-rate cap and included monthly technician hours: the transcript lists 5 hours per month in the middle plan and 10 hours per month in the higher plan. The most comprehensive plan also includes on-site audit support, log aggregation and help generating information-security policies needed for forthcoming audits. Tickets will carry a 15‑minute minimum; monthly hours do not roll over and over‑hour work would be billed separately. Licensing counts will be broken out by department so added users are billed to the requesting office.

Commission discussion noted a likely front‑loaded workload during initial deployment, with more hours expected in the first months and a taper afterward. The county will prorate antivirus, malware and other subscription licensing for the weeks remaining before June 30 and then place the county on a unified annual renewal schedule.

Separately, commissioners approved replacement of aging Ruckus Wi‑Fi access points in the courthouse. County staff reported nine existing APs found during a site survey and recommended installing 14 access points to address dead zones in the courtroom, court waiting area and basement. The packet presented to commissioners included an itemized equipment and labor quote described in the meeting as roughly “$35.72 10 in equipment and $2,400 labor,” and an annual recurring line (recorded in the discussion as approximately $25.07 40). The motion to approve the Wi‑Fi work passed with commissioners voting in favor.

The board also approved a camera system for a county shed. Meeting discussion listed a figure of “5 5000” for the system with a further note of about $2,000 labor; staff said the expense will come from a departmental budget. Commissioners voted to proceed.

Actions taken during the discussion directed staff to proceed with initial licensing and setup, to prorate subscriptions through June 30 and to implement the approved Wi‑Fi and camera purchases. Commissioners and staff discussed tracking tickets by department and producing monthly statements that show tickets, hours used and overage billing when applicable.

Background: staff described pending IT‑security audit requirements and said assistance with audits and policy generation is becoming common in client contracts. The county’s Microsoft licensing schedules vary by department now; the vendor proposed bringing all departments to a single annual cycle. The sheriff’s request for VPN setups for patrol vehicles (currently seven with a possible increase to 10) was cited as one example of expected workload during deployment.

The board approved the package by voice vote.