Hermosa Beach City School District board approves prequalified consultants for construction work and buys two Dell servers

The Hermosa Beach City School District board on Tuesday approved prequalification lists for three categories of consultants needed for upcoming construction work and authorized purchase and installation of two Dell domain servers to replace end-of-life equipment.

Staff said the prequalification pools will be used to support school construction projects and that the server purchase is intended to reduce cybersecurity and operational risks associated with the district's unsupported on-premises systems. All four board members present voted to approve the items; one member was absent.

Staff recommendation and votes

- CEQA services: District staff presented Request for Qualifications (RFQ) 2025-06, issued April 22, 2025, and recommended approval of PlaceWorks as a prequalified California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) services firm for measure HB. The board approved the recommendation. The motion was moved by Kathy and seconded by Carol. Vote: Board member Cluth — yes; Board member Bove LaMonica — yes; Vice President Clerk Varo — yes; President Cole — yes. Tally: 4 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 1 absent.

- Hazardous materials consulting: Under RFQ 2025-07 (issued April 22, 2025), staff recommended Millennium Consulting Associates as a prequalified hazardous materials consulting firm for measure HV. The board approved the recommendation. The motion was moved by Maggie and seconded by Kathy. Vote: Cluth — yes; Bove LaMonica — yes; Varo — yes; Cole — yes. Tally: 4 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 1 absent.

- Geotechnical engineering: Under RFQ 2025-08 (issued April 22, 2025), staff recommended NV5 Inc. as a prequalified geotechnical engineering and consulting firm for measure HV. The board approved the recommendation. The motion was moved by Kathy and seconded by Carol. Vote: Cluth — yes; Bove LaMonica — yes; Varo — yes; Cole — yes. Tally: 4 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 1 absent.

- IT infrastructure: Staff recommended purchase and installation of two Dell domain servers and associated services to replace the district's on-premises domain servers that "have reached their end of life and end of service designations, rendering them unsupported and exposing the district to increased cybersecurity and operational risk." The board approved the purchase. The motion was moved by Carol and seconded by Kathy. Vote: Cluth — yes; Bove LaMonica — yes; Varo — yes; Cole — yes. Tally: 4 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain, 1 absent.

Why it matters

The prequalified consultant pools cover CEQA review, hazardous materials work and geotechnical analysis, services commonly required for school construction and renovation projects; having prequalified firms in place lets the district issue scopes and contracts more quickly as projects move forward. Replacing unsupported domain controllers addresses immediate cybersecurity and operational continuity concerns for the district network.

Other business and next meeting

The board approved a revised renewal quote for Securly (item 9.8) as part of the consent agenda; staff indicated the only change in that consent-item renewal was the total amount, but a specific figure was not stated on the record. The board noted the calendar and said the next regular meeting will be August 13; teachers return July 18 and students July 20 according to the meeting remarks.

Meeting procedure and attendance

The meeting included a closed session followed by an open session. At the time the four action items were taken the board recorded four members present and one absent. Public comment was called but no members of the public addressed the board during open session.