City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the City Council approves the release of an RFP seeking bids for
a Citywide Municipal Wireless Mesh system.
BACKGROUND:
Wireless computer technology (wifi) allows an individual to connect their computer to
the Internet without phone lines or cable connections. Available in public places this
allows people to work away from their home or place of business. Businesses and
communities across the world are now making available connections to the general
public. Connections are either free or paid on an hourly or subscription basis
depending on the business or community. The reasons for providing this service
ranges from profit to bridging the digital divide in the community to creating
incentives for the public to come to targeted areas of the community.
Culver City created its own wireless “hotspot” in a 10 square block area downtown
called Town Plaza Wifi (TPWifi). Created as an economic development tool it has
enjoyed great success and been written up as a successful example of municipal
wifi in many articles since its inauguration. TPWifi is a free connection for anyone to
use in the downtown area served by the system. No other section of Culver City is
reached by TPWifi.
Communities are moving from providing localized hotspots of wifi access to
community wide access. The Internet is becoming viewed as the next utility in many
communities and plans to allow all citizens to have wireless broadband speed
Internet access are in progress in communities from San Francisco to New York
City. Each project reflects its local resources and goals. State laws are also
Meeting Date: 10/23/06 Item Number: C-4
AGENDA ITEM: Authorization to Release an RFP Seeking Bids for Citywide Municipal
Wifi
Contact Person/Dept.: John Richo Phone Number: (310) 253-5950
Fiscal Impact: Yes [] No [X] General Fund: Yes [] No [X]
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [] Attachments: [X]
Public Notification: Master Notification List (10/18/2006)
Department Approval:
John Richo (10/11/2006)
City Manager Approval:
Jerry B. Fulwood (10/18/2006)
City Controller Approval:
Mary V. Noller (10/18/2006)City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
shaping what types of efforts are available to communities when community wifi
projects are undertaken.
DISCUSSION:
The term “digital divide” has been used to describe the dividing line between those
who can afford to have Internet access and those who cannot. Graphics and multi-
media content has added an additional level of divide between those who use phone
based dial up (slow) and broadband (fast) access. Many sites and items of content
are now only available to those persons who can afford connections fast enough to
display or download them. Wifi is based on connecting at broadband speeds.
There are several general models that community wifi projects follow:
City owned and operated: The public sector entity becomes the Internet Service
Provider (ISP) to the users of the system. The city is responsible for
construction, maintenance, customer services, and where applicable billing.
City owned/Privately operated: The city builds the system and owns it. A private
sector vendor operates the system and provides the day to day point of contact
to the users. Costs can be fully paid by the city or shared with users.
Public/Private Partnership: The city and selected ISP vendor act as a partnership
to build and operate the wifi. Profits and work are divided by formula between
the partners.
Privately owned on leased city property: The city leases access to a private
sector ISP who builds, maintains, and operates the system for the benefit of the
community. The city receives a payment for use of resources such as light
poles, access to city buildings, and electrical connections. Other services and
access to the system may be part of the deal.
Private ISPs are concerned about municipalities operating as their own ISPs and
have championed legislation to limit or outlaw the practice as unfair competition.
Newer projects such as Santa Monica, San Francisco, and the Silicon Valley county
consortium are avoiding the option of becoming an ISP in favor of using the
resources and expertise of private sector ISPs to build and operate the community
wifis.
Culver City’s RFP follows the model of leasing access to City poles and buildings in
exchange for a payment and services. An overview of the project is contained in
attachment 1. By choosing to lease the City:
Avoids exposure to competition issues and potential litigation over themCity of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
Has no capital costs for building or leasing the hardware and software
Does not take on soft costs and staffing costs to maintain and operate the
system
Gains the benefit of a private sector firm whose business and expertise is in
building and operating a community wide wifi system.
Allows for operations 24 hours a day; even when City government is closed. The
vendor provides customer services and repair.
The RFP requests:
Community wide access based on the Culver City Tax Rate Area as defined by
the County Assessor. This ensures that Culver City addresses are not missed
even if they have Los Angeles zip codes.
Free wifi within those boundaries at broadband speeds
Enhanced wifi on paid tiers for higher broadband speeds / premium services
Secure reserved access channels within the wifi for use by the City for data
communications
Wifi access is based on users who are out of doors. Building density and other
devices in the home can interfere with getting a good signal. Many people will have
acceptable signals indoors and the installation of an antenna will enhance access.
Once a vendor is chosen and contracts negotiated and signed the system will go live
after a year of construction.
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
There are minimal costs associated with the release of the Wifi RFP.
Costs associated with the project are expected to be paid by the chosen vendor. A
fund will be established under the agreement sufficient to cover the costs of
removing the system if it is shutdown or the vendor goes out of business.
Potential ongoing costs are associated with maintenance of light poles and use of
electricity by the units on the poles. Some pole styles may require special power
wiring to facilitate the project. These costs would be borne by the vendor as part of
the contract.City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: General information overview of the wireless project
Attachment 2: Wireless RFP
MOTION:
That the City Council:
1. Approve the release of the RFP for a Citywide Wireless Mesh Wifi system,
MEETING DATE: 10/23/06
AGENDA ITEM: Authorization to Release an RFP Seeking Bids for Citywide
Municipal Wifi
ATTACHMENTS
Pages
1. General information overview of the wireless project
1-2
2. Wireless RFP
3-12INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
CITY OF CULVER CITY
• iracarrrezitican
.TcchnD1agc
Government Buildings
City Hall
Point-to-Muitipoid
i(triirv)
Wireless Mesh
Access Points
Citywide WI-Fl
Hot Zones
Page 1 of 2
vvc s Manage
Project: Municipal Wireless "Wifi" Start Date: Spring 2006
Division: Technical Services End Date: TBD
Current Status: In progress
I
Overview:
The City will solicit proposals to have a private sector company build and operate a City wide Wifi
service. The service will allow Internet access by citizens, visitors, and employees anywhere within
the geographical area of Culver City. The City is seeking to have free service as the base, paid tiers of
service allowing for additional speed, and reserved service for use by the City government for
municipal purposes. The Wifi will be owned and operated by the selected vendor who will lease space
on City light poles and buildings.
What is a Municipal Will Mesh?
A mesh allows a person with a wireless capable device (laptop or PDA typically) to find and connect
to an access point (AP) of the Mesh. These APs use sophisticated radios to send the signal to a
connection with the Internet and allow the person to "surf the web" from anywhere in the community.
Government BuildingsMesh APs overlap each other to form connections and transmit information back and forth to the
subscriber. Not every mesh point has an Internet connection. They form a "cloud" of access across
the community with only a few points actually requiring access to the Internet.
In the example at left AP number 3
has access to the Internet. This would
typically be at a building such as City
Hall. APs 1, 2, 4, and 5 are mesh
units which send information back
and forth to AP 3. These would
typically be light poles around the
community. Notice that AP 5, by
itself, is not in range of AP 1. If AP 5
was the Internet connection it would
use AP 3 or 4 to forward Internet
traffic to a subscriber in AP l's area.
Culver City is 4.987 square miles in
size. Mesh systems use approximately 30 APs per square mile to form the coverage. The municipal
Wifi coverage is based on accessing the system out of doors. Wifi signals will penetrate buildings to
some depth but building materials, distance from the AP, and angle of signal will interfere with good
connections.
Connection strength (and speed of response) is based on how close you are to the mesh AP and if you
are being covered by more than one AP. For example people within the triangle formed by APs 1, 2,
and 3 would have strong coverage. Someone in the lower left half of AP 1 would have less connection
strength the closer they got to the border. Mesh APs will allow people to move around in the
community while maintaining their connections to the Internet. Each AP will "hand off' the person's
session as their device moves. This is useful for vehicles which can have computers mounted in them
and drive around the community.
Police and Fire mobile data applications become possible within the City. Other functions such as
inspectors and route vehicles (sanitation/public works) can look forward to application access in the
field. The Municipal Wifi Mesh forms the backbone that these services will ride on. Each of them
must be purchased/developed and the appropriate components placed in the vehicles.
The Digital Divide and Economic Development:
The network will help bridge the digital divide between low-income residents by providing an easily
accessible and free level of broadband Internet service. The network will also act as an economic
development tool and community draw which encourages shoppers and business people to spend time
in the community.
Present Status:
The IT Department is developing the RFP which must be approved prior to release by the City
Council.
Page 2 of 2Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
1.0 Goals and Objectives
Qualified vendors are requested to prepare and submit a response for consideration by the City of
Culver City ("City", "the City") for the design, implementation, and operation of a ubiquitous
citywide broadband enabled wireless network for residents, businesses, visitors, and local
government services. This includes replacing and absorbing the existing free Internet access
presently available to the public at specified locations. The City encourages providers that have
experience in establishing user friendly, unobtrusive, and ubiquitous public Internet access with
tiered levels (Free — Paid) of service to apply. The implementation of the system is to be
completed within twelve (12) months from contract execution per agreed upon schedule.
The selected vendor will design, implement, operate, and maintain the equipment and systems
required to deliver the wireless network. The wireless network is to be designed around current
standards based technologies. The network will exist generally at three levels. Level One is a
free service to the community. Level Two is a paid service with enhanced capacity. Level Three
includes services reserved for use by the City for Safety Services and Non Safety City related
business purposes. All three levels will be accessible City wide. Priority in day to day service
and in emergencies will be given to City Services.
2.0 Project Background and Intent
2.1 City of Culver City
The City of Culver City is located on the Westside of Los Angeles near the intersection
of the 10 and 405 freeways. It is a Charter City with a City Manager form of government
and a 5 member elected City Council. Culver City has an estimated daytime peak
population of 250,000. Culver City covers an area of 4.987 square miles. The City is
home to Sony Picture Studios and has a mix of film related, light industrial, and corporate
businesses in addition to being a bedroom community of West Los Angeles. The Kirk
Douglas Theater and Town Plaza downtown area are the centerpieces of the City's
continuing redevelopment efforts. Culver City is a full service city with Police, Fire,
Public Works, and Transportation departments.
2.2 Intent and Features for Citywide Wireless Network
The proposed network should provide City residents the ability to access City Internet
content, services, and third party Internet content and services while freely moving about
the City. The network will help bridge the digital divide between low-income residents
by providing an easily accessible and free level of Internet service.
Services to the general public will be free at a lower level of capacity and paid for higher
capacity.
The citywide network should provide an isolated and secure method for Safety (Police
and Fire) Services to communicate and access resources unique to their functions. Non-
Safety Service applications and processes used by departments in addition to Safety
Page 1 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
Services should be isolated from both the general public and the channel(s) used for
unique Safety Service communications. Such applications will include (but are not
limited to) mobile data applications, secure communications to law enforcement, and
City field agent connections to City applications.
The City has determined that the most optimal and cost efficient way to provide these
types of services is to find a qualified network operator who will build and operate the
network. The network operator will provide all funding, staffing, equipment, and resolve
all technical difficulties for end-users and City services uses. The City would make
certain assets available for mounting and implementation of the citywide wireless
network.
2.3 Use of City Assets
The City will allow the selected provider to have access to City light poles and City
owned and operated buildings for deployment of equipment. If additional locations are
required that are not City controlled the vendor will undertake all negotiations and
payments required to complete the coverage.
2.4 Monthly Fee Paid to City
The chosen vendor will pay a monthly fee to the City for use of the assets and an amount
for subscriptions collected. The payment structure to the City should be proposed in the
RFP, and will be negotiated during the contracting process.
2.5 Removal Escrow Account
The chosen vendor will negotiate with the City to put in place an escrow account which
will be sufficient to remove the equipment and make the installed locations whole if the
system is shut down and requires removal. The escrow account will remain in place for
the duration of the relationship between the vendor and the City. If the vendor's business
changes any successor or division will inherit this obligation.
2.6 City Safety Services, and Non Safety Service Applications.
The City expects to use the broadband wireless network for several future application
deployments. Many of these applications will require dedicated and isolated bandwidth.
Currently the City does not have any safety service or mobile data solutions for its police
and fire vehicles. The City would like providers with experience in providing mobile
data access to highlight their experience in providing this type of secure communication.
Providers that do not have experience with these types of applications should submit
proposals as well.
The City is in the process of implementing a Computer Aided Dispatch and Automatic
Vehicle Location (CAD/AVL) system from Orbital called a "Smart Bus system" for its
L1-1
Page 2 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
transportation fleet. The proposed wireless network should be designed for easy future
integration into this project if the need arises. The City would like providers with
experience in providing mobile data access to transportation smart bus systems to apply.
Providers that do not have solutions with these types of applications should submit
proposals as well
2.7 Free Public Internet Access
Free coverage should include the entire City and be a component of a minimum of three
levels of service. Level One is free service to the community. Level Two is a paid level
of service with additional capabilities and enhanced performance. Level Three is service
reserved for use by the City.
3.0 Scope of Work and Requirements
3.01 Implementation Timeframe
Implementation will be completed within one (1) year of the completion of negotiation
and signing of contracts.
3.1 Services
The network provider will be required to provide Internet service to consumers and
businesses through the City. The price and service mix should be comparable to other
alternatives (dial up, DSL, cable modem, and cellular) currently available. The City will
not control pricing or features but will give special consideration for providers that can
illustrate a long term sustainable service and technological innovation strategy.
Preference will also be given to providers that will provide value-added services to the
City's consumer base. These services include but are not limited to email services, web
hosting services and Internet security (firewall, anti-spyvvare, antivirus, and privacy)
software tools.
Commercial retail services should include; 1.0 Mbps or greater services at competitive
prices; monthly fixed rate service plans; easy portability within City limits; roaming
capability within other selected provider run networks; and daily or hourly competitive
rates for short term users.
3.2 Bandwidth Capacity
The selected broadband wireless network provider should deliver a system with sufficient
bandwidth for all tiered (Free — Paid) levels of service.
The City requires 1 Mbps or better connection for Commercial use and 1 to 3 Mbps
bandwidth for City and Safety Services use. The City will give special consideration to
providers that provide service levels above the noted recommendations as well as those
that can illustrate a track record of implementing high utilization high performance
CS
Page 3 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
networks. The wireless broadband network must support the ability to transfer video
streaming, VOIP, high speed mobile data, and large file transfers concurrently. The
wireless broadband network must also be able to prioritize City and Safety Services use
data streams from retail data streams.
3.25 Filtering
Vendor should provide possible solutions addressing filtering/blocking the download of
copyrighted material and child pornography. This should include file transfers on Peer to
Peer networks.
3.3 Security
The proposed wireless network should provide a high level of security for both consumer
usage and City uses. The City will give special consideration to providers that have taken
a multi-level approach to provide all classes of customers a safe and reliable network.
The system should provide consumer and free access users with authentication, validation,
authorization, and packet inspection services. It must have the ability to mitigate the risk
for these wireless users by providing user isolation and traffic origination analysis. The
provider must also support the ability to isolate traffic that illustrates malicious activity
such as the spreading of viruses, worms and hacking attempts. The system should
provide methods for wireless data transfer encryption such as the use of WEP, WPA,
WPA2, Virtual Private Network (VPN) tunneling and/or Advanced Encryption Standard
(AES) encryption.
For City application and public safety needs, the system must provide multi-level
protection mechanisms including support for 802.1x authentication using Extensible
Authentication Protocol (EAP); packet inspection services; support for VPN tunneling;
support for wireless encryption using WPA, WPA2 and AES; support the ability to
isolate traffic that illustrates malicious activity such as the spreading of viruses, worms
and hacking attempts; and the support for filtering of traffic based on Media Access
Control (MAC) address, Internet Protocol (IP) address, subnets, and Transmission
Control Protocol (TCP) ports.
The City is interested in a network that supports multiple ESSIDs mapped to individual
VLANs in order to provide access for multiple departmental needs. The City has 13
departments including Police, Fire, Public Works, City Attorney (Code Enforcement),
and Community Development (Housing, Building & Safety, Engineering, and Planning).
Field/mobile applications for all of the noted departments are under consideration.
3.4 Mesh Density
The proposed wireless network should provide a density of nodes per square mile sufficient
to:
Page 4 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
• Cover the area with a robust mesh
• Have sufficient density to heal the mesh to cover expected levels of failure during
normal service.
• Handle "hotspot" concentration areas of activity
• Be capable of determining where high usage patterns are developing so the vendor
can enhance services as necessary.
Ideally the proposed network should deliver 100% in-street (outdoor) coverage in densely
populated areas with no additional hardware. Coverage will be a key and critical selection
criterion. The network should be accessible with readily available and standard' 802.11b/g
equipment. Client access should be minimized to no more than approximately 600ft from
any node.
3.5 Coverage — Critical Boundaries
Culver City is not defined by zip codes. Coverage must include 100% of the Culver City
Tax Rate Area defined by the County Assessor. Some parcels have Los Angeles zip codes
but are geographically within Culver City. Also some parcels have Culver City zip codes
but are part of the City of Los Angeles. The County Assessor Tax Rate Area parcel
addresses should be considered the authority in determining 100% coverage for Culver City.
A reference map of City boundaries is attached at the end of the RFP.
3.55 Installation Issues — Height and Power on Light Poles
Typical light poles are 30-35 feet from base to the spot where the light attaches.
Vendor will need to examine and research options to ensure that necessary power is available
where needed. If solar is chosen the panel location and arrangement will have to be
approved by the City.
Several types of light poles exist in Culver City. 120/240V poles are flat rated by Southern
California Edison. Vendor and the City may have to coordinate negotiations with SCE to
support the additional power draw. Non-flat rated poles are on high voltage connections.
Any wiring required to connect the equipment must be run internally within the structure of
the pole and must be of quality all-weather workmanship. The City will inspect all additions
and changes to poles and buildings.
3.6 Reliability and Support
The City is interested in a high reliability network with a 99.5-99.9% uptime rate of
availability throughout the coverage area. Support for customers should be provided by the
selected provider and should be available on a 24/7 basis.
Standard is defined as 802.11b/g cards that come with wireless enabled laptops or other wireless enabled devices.
This does not include high-powered wireless (transmit power 15dBm or higher), MIMO, or 802.11n equipment.
This does not include equipment with high powered antennas 5dBi or higher).
Page 5 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
Vendor will support the implementation directly unless third party support is specified in the
proposal. If the vendor will not be directly supporting and maintaining the system and
customer problem calls detailed information on who will be the agent must be attached and
clearly identified.
Vendor may not contract out support or maintenance to third parties during the life of the
system without prior notification and concurrence of the City.
3.7 Shutdown and Removal of Vendor's Equipment
If the vendor's system is shutdown the vendor is responsible to remove all equipment and
make whole any damage to light poles or facilities. The City will require an escrow account
arrangement to be put in place to ensure that the system is removed at no cost to the City.
3.8 Updates of Equipment and Technology
The chosen vendor's system will be maintained to current industry security, software, and
hardware updates and patches. Annually the vendor will submit a report to the City of
Culver City Information Technology Director which details the vendor's update and
migration plan to keep the WIFI network compatible with current technology in general use
by the public.
3.9 Traffic and Usage Analysis
Quarterly the chosen vendor will submit a report to the City of Culver City Information
Technology Director detailing the state of the system including overall uptime, number of
free and paid users, load, and other general analysis information so the City can chart growth
and service issues and report to City Council.
4.0 Bidder's Conference
A bidder's conference will be held on Wednesday, November 29, 2006 at 10 AM. The
conference will be held at Culver City's City Hall. The facility is located at 9770 Culver
Blvd. Culver City, CA and is at the corner of Culver Blvd. and Duquesne Ave. Parking
is free underneath the building. The entrance is off Duquesne Ave. Representation at the
bidding conference is strongly encouraged. RSVP's may be e-mailed to
it.department@culvercity.org. Please include in the Subject "Wifi RSVP". The
department main line phone number is (310) 253-5950 for phone RSVP requests.
5.0 Vendor Response Information
Copy in Electronic Format
Page 6 of 9% Current Coverage Municipality/Area Finished % Coverage Completion Date
Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
The vendor should respond with a proposal covering the system described. The response
should include an electronic version of the RFP response in Word for Windows 2003
format on a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM.
Vendor Response Table Questions
Contained in the vendor's proposal should be the following table of responses. Where
additional detail is requested please attach sheets as needed referencing the question to
make a complete response:
Section A - WIFI Deployments
Yes No Partial Question or Criteria
Do you currently have a Municipal WIFI program in
place? If yes please attach information on the project
and contact information for references
Do you have a Municipal WIFI program presently
being installed? If yes please attach information on the
project and contact information for references
Do you have a non-Municipal WIFI program in place?
If yes please attach information on the project and
contact information for references
Do you have a non-Municipal WIFI program presently
being installed? If yes please attach information on the
project and contact information for references
For deployments in progress or complete please fill in the following table. % Coverage is the
percent of the total area within the geographical boundaries of the project area or community.
Section B - Municipal WIFI Deployments (If you have no Municipal programs skip to next
section)
Yes No Partial Question or Criteria
Does your deployment have separate network access
for City use versus the general public? If yes attach a
separate summary of the configuration.
Does your deployment allow for priority access to be
given to the City's communications?
I-91
Page 7 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
Has your deployment met the uptime and resiliency
requirements of the organization? If no, describe the
issues and how you resolved (are resolving) them. List
the name and contact information for the agency.
Is the deployment you did in the past substantially the
same as the proposed Culver City solution? If no,
please detail significant changes in technology or
approach.
Section C - Tier Plans
Yes No Partial Question or Criteria
The proposed plan has free access City wide?
The proposed plan has one or more paid tiers for
individuals and businesses with enhanced capabilities?
Your proposed plan has channel(s) reserved for City
use.
Number of channels available to the City:
Speed of connection available free: Speed of connection available paid: Speed of connection available to City: Section D - Site Filtering
Yes No Partial Question or Criteria
Does your proposed implementation allow for levels of
site filtering? For example denying access to classes of
sites to City employees but leaving open access to all
sites for a designated Police channel.
Does your proposed solution include a filtering /
blocking solution for copyrighted material and child
pornography?
Section E - Maintenance and Support
Yes No Partial Question or Criteria
The proposing vendor covers all maintenance of the
system.
The proposing vendor will provide an 800, 310, or 424
number staffed to support the free service customers?
If no, detail how telephone support will be done.
The proposing vendor will provide an 800, 310, or 424
D C)
Page 8 of 9Culver City WIFI Request For Proposal
number staffed to support the City and pay tier
customers? If no, detail how telephone support will be
done.
Vendor will provide a web chat contact capability for
users to troubleshoot or ask questions.
Vendor will provide an e-mail contact address to allow
submission of questions and issues.
Vendor will have support available 24 hours/7 days?
The proposing vendor will provide the support directly
(i.e. Support will not be sub-contracted to third parties)
Dii
Page 9 of 9THE CITY OF CULVER CITY
CO
ON' NATIONS"
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT
9770 CULVER BL
CULVER CITY, CA 90232
TEL: 310-253-5950
CITYWIDE WI-Fl
RFP MAP|10 10|:.40 I
foi st -
-
t
_,,Vis'SI!‘ , 44 4.
4 44445 j,,N 14%— „ .
,
4 . 0- ,„.S• .
40. *
NATION1
SCALE 1:31,000 OCTOBER 5, 2006
LEGEND
Los Angeles Zip Codes
90016 in 90066
90034 90291
90045 90292
Culver City Zip Codes
90230 & 90232
•
-* -#
.0, 0.
LA,
CENTS
at
401'
.#4, 444S I
cum NIA ViAti
SON
m •|10 9| 4%.
'4t•t