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Riverside approves urgent five‑year Avaya phone‑system renewal to avoid 311 disruption
Summary
The council unanimously waived the Sunshine Ordinance and authorized a five‑year subscription renewal for the city's Avaya phone system (total ~ $1,111,003.61) after staff said a lapse would risk 311 and other call services; staff negotiated discounts and sought the emergency addition to the agenda to prevent service interruption.
Riverside City Council on April 21 approved, by unanimous vote, an urgent five‑year subscription renewal for the city’s Avaya phone system after staff told council a failure to renew would risk interruption of 311 and other essential services.
Chief Innovation Officer George Khalil said the city’s phone system supports 311, non‑emergency public safety lines and internal call functions; he told council the system handles roughly 26,000 citywide calls per month and about 10,500 311 calls per month. Khalil said staff had negotiated approximately $175,000 in discounts and received a final renewal quote only on April 7, which left insufficient time for the normal contract process. He asked the council to waive the Sunshine Ordinance to allow the item to be added to the agenda to avoid an immediate service disruption.
Khalil presented a five‑year subscription and support proposal with year‑one costs around $209,000 and a five‑year total of about $1,111,003.61. Councilmembers acknowledged the operational risk to 311 and moved to approve; the council first voted to waive the Sunshine Ordinance and then approved the renewal unanimously.
Council recorded no dissent and thanked Khalil and the innovation team for negotiating discounts and explaining the technical urgency. The City Manager’s office was authorized to execute documents and purchase orders necessary to effect the renewal and to make minor non‑substantial adjustments required for implementation.
