" Coming Soon."
This teaser forecasting
Jersey City's introducing of a much-heralded "Consolidated Affordable Housing Portal" appeared in a Winter 2023 posting of the city's Division of Affordable Housing.
The system will, according to the city administration, "establish a central online resource for economical housing so that residents can browse and apply for (inexpensive) housing in the city."
Getting to that point has actually been anything but smooth.
The City Council voted in February 2021 to award CGP&H/ Electricbaby, of
Frisco, Col., a 2-year contract not to surpass $500,000 to "maintain and set up" the website, to name a few associated jobs.
Establishing and designing the portal itself was estimated to cost $253,750.
The company, one of seven to send propositions to the city, was advised by city administrators "based on its comprehensive experience, comprehensive project plan and (bidding) requirements."
In particular, according to city company administrator John Metro, the vendor is particularly proficient handling the "regulative structure that governs the production and monitoring of affordable housing in the state ...".
Nevertheless, in March 2022, the city hired a new
Denver-based contractor-- Intellectyx-- to "maintain and set up software and hardware" for the operation and maintenance of the portal project.
The firm was awarded a 2-year contract not to go beyond $500,000, of which $313,960 was allocated to run the website and construct, with the expectation that "the project would be finished by September 2022 before transitioning to an upkeep and support stage up until March 2024.".
But, considering that work started, city administrators said the task has actually run into "unpredicted technical hold-ups connected to the city's back-end server configuration, data security file encryption and additional portal performance" required "to comply with (state) Uniform Housing Affordability Controls and Fair Housing Standards.".
These changes "needed additional improvements, style and testing environment maintenance (which) have resulted in setup hold-ups ... (and) caused a cost-overrun (of) $91,000 due to the requirement for extra resources and staffing to meet the needed minimum portal performance.".
This extra expenditure will boost the general payment to Intellectyx, from the initial $313,960 to develop the portal to a revised $322,390 while the total general cost will rise to $636,350, administrators state.
If the City Council votes Wednesday to license the change-order, the city wishes to "commence a final public launch of the Consolidated Affordable Housing Portal in June 2024.".
Whether the city is still on the hook for any or all of the contractual payments initially vowed to Electricbaby could not be readily found out.
The city Division of Affordable Housing will continue post online notifications of cost effective apartment opportunities readily available through brand-new residential advancements and social service agencies.
In other matters, the council-- at the wish of Ward E member James Solomon-- is anticipated to move to redraft a pending ordinance that sets pricing standards for third-party food delivery companies and security guidelines for shipment motorists.
Enforcement of the proposed law was to fall primarily upon the city Division of Commerce-- with city police-- however its director, Maynard Woodson, told the lawmakers he was "not spoken with" about the brand-new duty and added, "I don't have the personnel for this.".
Prinz-Arey and At-large member Amy Degise feared that due, in part, to rulings by the state Attorney General and by regional police brass, officers would be hard-pressed to implement the new code. Solomon said some kind of strategy was needed to "share the obligation" of bike and public security in between third-party vendors and the city.
To attend to the training of firemens, the council will be asked to contract with Lease Servicing Center, Inc., through the Sourcewell Cooperative, to rent a multi-story structure-- a modular tower that firemens can use to practice rappelling at a cost of $2.6 million spread over 10 years, starting October 1, 2025. The JCFD lost its initial training center with the advancement of the Society Hill domestic community on the city's West Side in the mid-1990s and, since then, has actually used other locations.
The council will be asked to allow unsettled interns from Hudson County School of Technology to assist personnel at the city animal shelter with dispersing and preparing food and water to the animals, cleaning up cages and other jobs between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday not to go beyond 20 hours a week.
The city Division of Sustainability is suggesting that the council award a $1,137,600 1 year agreement for tree planting to Kevin Downes Tree Service, Inc., of Hawthorne, as the most affordable of 4 bidders. The city projects it will plant 40 new trees-- mostly oak-- this spring, with "more robust" activity in the fall.
In a related environmental development, will enact two weeks to codify rules on the growing of "native plants" city-wide to deal with what Ward B Councilmember Mira Prinz-Arey called "continuous issues" dealing with domestic "pollinator gardens" and with what Ward D member Yusef Saleh identified undesirable intrusions on community gardens.
The city Department of Infrastructure is asking the council to approve a 1 year extension of a $147,785 contract it formerly granted to MKW + Associates, of Rutherford, for an additional $55,875 "for extra building administrative services" associated with the replacement of spotlights at
Arlington Park basketball courts.
The city Law Department has encouraged the council to settle a civil lawsuit filed by Daniel Wiley in 2020, alleging that he "sustained harassment, discrimination and retaliation throughout his employment with the city from his then-supervisor." The proposed settlement would be for $500,000.
And the council is being asked to give "regional support" for Backpack Boyz JC to run a retail cannabis enterprise at 746 Grand St. The candidate has gotten approvals from the Planning Board and Cannabis Control Board to run at that location.
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