Leesburg IT seeks SD‑WAN, security position and software upgrades in next budget

Leesburg IT staff presented a budget request to the commission that would fund a network overhaul, add cybersecurity capacity and expand software and GIS tools.

The department told the commission it is pursuing a software‑defined wide area network (SD‑WAN) as an alternative to aging dark fiber, an ongoing managed service for that network, and new circuits for multiple sites. The presenter said the licensing costs for part of the project are "just shy of $90,000," and that the town is also looking at an overall SD‑WAN estimate of about $123,410 (figures given in the meeting). He said the circuits are currently estimated at about $19,160 and will be a recurring cost.

Why it matters: network redundancy and segmentation affect public‑safety and utilities operations, and several of the requested items are tied to compliance and records obligations. The department emphasized cybersecurity and business continuity as primary drivers for the requests.

IT accomplishments and risk profile

Presenter Lehi, speaking for the department, summarized recent accomplishments including incident response coordination around a CrowdStrike alert that "wasn't a cyber attack," a hardware e‑cycling program, preparations for town‑hall audio/video upgrades, and deployment of a help‑desk system that now supports…