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Orland Park approves Citybot AI chatbot and IVR contract to link residents to Tyler 311
Summary
The Village of Orland Park approved a sole-source contract with Citybot to provide an AI-driven web and phone chatbot integrated with Tyler 311. Trustees pressed staff on accuracy, citations to codes, language support and governance before voting to authorize the manager to execute the agreement.
The Orland Park Board of Trustees approved a sole‑source licensing agreement with Citybot on a 3‑year base term and optional renewals to provide an AI web chatbot and integrated phone IVR service tied directly to the village’s Tyler 311 work‑ticket system.
In presenting the item, staff said the contract’s base costs total $106,500 for years one through three (year 1: $43,500; year 2: $31,000; year 3: $32,000) with two optional extension years that would add about $67,000, yielding a not‑to‑exceed total of $173,500. The system will be limited to village data sets (ordinance book, public finances, Tyler 311 records) rather than broad web searches, staff said, and will support multiple languages.
Trustees spent the bulk of the discussion on implementation and guardrails. Trustee Lawler asked how staff will ensure the chatbot returns accurate answers to questions such as permit thresholds; officials said Citybot’s responses will be logged and periodically reviewed, and the system is designed to flag items it cannot answer so staff can follow up. “It’s not going to make something up,” a staff presenter said, noting the bot can be trained to answer with a citation and a link back to the source document. Trustees pressed for a visible disclaimer and for routing options so users can request a live callback when the bot is unsure.
Supporters argued the system will improve 24/7 access to basic municipal information and reduce routine call volumes. Trustee Balani said communities typically see “20 to 50% of routine inquiries” handled by a bot, reducing workload and shortening staff handling time. Trustees also sought assurance Citybot can create a Tyler 311 ticket when service is needed; staff confirmed the chatbot can auto‑create tickets and provide a reference number.
After questions about governance, verification processes and multilingual support (staff said the village will provide the authoritative datasets and the bot will return answers only from those sources), the board voted to approve the contract and to authorize the village manager to execute related agreements subject to attorney review. The board also discussed periodic reporting back to trustees on bot performance and suggested staff return with metrics on accuracy and user feedback.
