Oxnard CFO seeks $11.49M contract amendment, $2.5M appropriation for ERP completion

Javier Chago de Lacero, City of Oxnard chief financial officer, asked the council to "approve and authorize the mayor to execute a ninth amendment to the professional services agreement with Creative Core Technologies 9431-21-FN in the amount of $11,490,000 for a new not to exceed contract amount of $21,510,000 and to extend the term to 12/30/2028" to complete project management and production support for the city's enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation.

Chago de Lacero told the council the city has invested $14,400,000 in the ERP through December 2025 and that the current estimate to complete the implementation is about $25,400,000 — roughly $5,200,000 more than the figure reported in April 2024. "The current estimate includes $1,500,000 in contingency funds for the utility billing implementation," he said.

Why it matters: the ERP is the city's core business software for paying vendors and employees, tracking budgets and spending, managing permits and licenses, maintaining public-works assets and processing utility billing. Chago de Lacero said the project began in 2019 to replace an older financial and operations system and described the work as "like replacing the city's financial engine while the car is still moving." He said the goals are to "modernize outdated systems, eliminate shadow spreadsheets and databases, improve financial transparency and reporting, streamline city business processes, and improve the online services for residents, businesses, and vendors."

Status and timeline: Tyler Technologies was selected as the software vendor in 2019 and the city engaged KCT (Creative Core Technologies) for assessment and implementation support. Staff reported two modules are live: core financials (go-live October 2022) and human capital management (HR and payroll, go-live January 25, 2025). Two modules are in the late stages of work: enterprise permit and licensing and enterprise asset management, both targeted for phased go-lives in May 2026. Utility billing has not started and is projected for completion in 2028; a vendor self-service enhancement supporting core financials is expected in 2027.

Reasons for higher cost and schedule extension: Chago de Lacero cited several causes for the increased estimate and extended timeline, including the complexity of payroll ("multiple bargaining agreements, unique payment rules" requiring extra configuration and testing), permit and licensing fee structures that require cross-departmental coordination and data conversion, staff turnover that created knowledge gaps and slowed configuration and testing, and delayed change management and training.

Budget request and next steps: In addition to the contract amendment request, staff asked council to "approve an appropriation in the amount of $2,500,000 from the General Fund 101 available fund balance to fund the project C2034 ERP implementation in fiscal year 2025–26 and authorize the corresponding transfers for the project budget," and to "receive and file the ERP system annual report." The transcript does not record a council vote or further procedural action on these requests.

Implementation partners: Chago de Lacero said Tyler Technologies provides the ERP software and Creative Core Technologies (KCT) provides project management and go-live production support. He said KCT's role has expanded and the proposed amendment would fund completion of implementation and production support through December 30, 2028.

The council presentation closed with the three formal recommendations restated; the transcript ends with the request for council action, with no vote recorded in the provided excerpt.