Trustees approve Civic Systems accounting contract after debate over timing and staffing

The Village of University Park’s Board of Trustees voted to approve an agreement with Civic Systems for accounting-software conversion services following discussion about timing, training and who will manage the system.

Trustee Lewis moved and Trustee Williams seconded the motion to enter the contract; the motion carried on a roll-call vote. Mayor Rudz said, "I concur." The board recorded affirmative votes from the trustees present.

Several trustees urged caution about implementing a new enterprise financial system before the village hires a permanent finance director. Trustees and staff said implementation time varies by modules and complexity and that Civic Systems will provide on-site training for the staff who will use each module. Staff noted the board had negotiated a $5,000 reduction to the vendor price.

Village staff said the process of migrating years of accounting data and preparing audit trial balances will take time; depending on the modules selected, implementation commonly takes six to 12 months. Staff recommended prioritizing core general-ledger and fund accounting modules first, with optional modules (for example, code-enforcement tracking) added later.

The board approved the contract to start the conversion and onboarding process. Trustees said they expect staff to return with implementation timelines and a plan showing which positions will manage the live system once it is in service. The motion did not include a requirement to delay the start pending hiring of a finance director.

What’s next: staff will finalize the vendor agreement and present implementation milestones, training schedules and an assigned point of contact for system administration.