March 29, 2024
BANGOR DAILY NEWS (BANGOR, MAINE

Hermon officials question high costs for town computer> System’s proposed pr

HERMON — A new computer system for Hermon is continuing to be controversial. Resident Don Shepley said this week he expected a petition drive to ask the Town Council to reconsider the lease-purchase agreement it approved on Dec. 14 in a 4-3 vote.

Shepley said that a group of four residents had discussed forming a committee, possibly to be called Concerned Citizens for Responsible Government, that might look at similar matters in the future.

The purpose of the petition would be to have the purchase reconsidered, and not necessarily to prevent it, Shepley said.

One councilor who has been vocal in opposing the purchase is Louis LaChance.

“We’ve talked to a number of people in town government,” LaChance said. “We’ve been told that this much computer is enough to run Portland, no problem.”

The town has three terminals and one file server. According to Town Manager Kathryn Ruth, the new system would allow for two points of sale at the counter, a file server, and six terminals. The system would calculate excise taxes automatically, and allow more functions to be carried out at the same time.

Ruth pointed out that the town processes excise taxes not only for resident vehicles, but for those operated by the more than 200 businesses in town — revenues which keep property taxes lower.

Code Enforcement Officer Will Mosher said that the town issued an open request for proposals. Several companies offered plans only for the hardware, he said, but only two bid on the whole package.

The cost of just the computer from Gemini Systems is $11,472. Adding the software, training and wiring brings the total cost to $49,359, if purchased outright. Company support would cost $7,377 a year.

The town also was offered two lease-purchase options, at the end of which it could purchase everything for $1.

The first was to lease the equipment for five years for $11,397 a year, plus the $7,377 support cost, for a total of $18,774 a year.

The second, which the council approved, was to lease the equipment for three years at a cost of $17,695 a year, plus the support cost, for a total of $25,072 a year.

By leasing for only three years, the town will save almost $3,900 in interest. It also will have $10,827 left from what was appropriated this year to apply to the second year’s lease payment.

Regardless of the options, LaChance objected to spending $49,000 on a computer and software. The town appropriated $35,900 at the town meeting in June, he said.

LaChance said he was “very much against doing business” with Gemini. The town bought a computer several years ago from the company, he said, and when the town bought another one, the cost was “wicked, wicked.”

Mosher said that the software being purchased was job-specific to a municipal government, and that Gemini had enough programmers so that the town could be confident of getting service.

Ruth said that she had not expected the council to take action so quickly. She had expected it would be put off for a few weeks, and that more information would be disseminated and discussed before the vote.

Town attorney Edmond J. Bearor of Bangor wrote a letter stating that the option chosen by the council did not violate the decision by the town meeting because the cost for the year was less than had been appropriated. Viewed as a capital improvement, it would need to be approved by ordinance.

“The ordinance would explain the financial data,” Ruth said, and the matter will be on the agenda for the Jan. 11 council meeting. A public hearing could be set for the Jan. 25 meeting, with the councilors then voting on the ordinance.

Ruth hopes that people with concerns or questions will attend the hearing. There has not been much public attendance at council meetings, she said, adding that residents’ opinions during the budget process also would be welcome.

The current computer system is “overdue for updating,” said council Chairman Harold Mailman. “It’s chewing up staff time now,” he added, and sometimes the system crashes.

Mailman was one of three councilors to vote against the proposal, but he said that was only because of its wording regarding an extra $1,000 for in-house upgrading of some of the current equipment.

He compared the concept of leasing the equipment to issuing contracts for snowplowing.

The marketing representative for Gemini, Glen Veevaert, wrote Ruth that the proposed system was much smaller than what the city of Bangor has, and more comparable to the one used in Hampden.


Have feedback? Want to know more? Send us ideas for follow-up stories.

comments for this post are closed

You may also like