Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Assessment Software topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Vigo County assessor outlines costly vendor switch for property-assessment software
Summary
Assessor Kevin Gardner told the council he plans to convert assessment software from Provow (Grama) to XSoft because of declining vendor support; conversion costs are $390,090 (spread over three years) with ongoing maintenance of $71,000 annually and an estimated $77,000 net annual increase during the conversion period.
County Assessor Kevin Gardner briefed the council on a planned conversion of the county’s property-assessment system from the legacy Grama (Provow) platform to XSoft, citing declining vendor support and long support response times.
Gardner said Provow (the incumbent) has reduced customer support and that XSoft has become the market leader. He reported a one-time conversion cost of $390,090 that XSoft has agreed to spread over three years and an annual maintenance fee of $71,000. Gardner compared that to current Provow maintenance of approximately $123,009.28 per year and said the first three years of the conversion would cost roughly $201,030 per year before reaching payback in about six years, after which the county would realize an estimated annual savings of roughly $52,000.
Gardner said the reassessment fund currently holds roughly $1.1 million and that the conversion funds would come from that levied fund (restricted for assessor reassessment activities). He told the council he will present the contract to the commissioners next week and offered to share a contract copy with council members for review. Council members asked the assessor to provide written comparisons and to consider adding a contractual cap on annual maintenance increases.
Council leadership directed staff to place the item on the council agenda for action next month so the budget committee can review funding implications and timing. Gardner said conversion work would not begin until after the statutory roll and certification (mid-June) and that the vendor will make software available for training this year with operations expected by Jan. 1, 2027.
