MEMORANDUM. May 15, Planning and Parks Committee Members. From: Department of Planning and Parks

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1 May 15, 2018 MEMORANDUM To: Planning and Parks Committee Members From: Department of Planning and Parks Re: Cc: Mobile Application for City of Wildwood (ios and Android) (Wards All) The Honorable James R. Bowlin, Mayor Administration/Public Works Committee Members Economic Development Committee Members Ryan S. Thomas, P.E., Director of Public Works Kathy Arnett, Assistant Director of Planning and Parks Gary Crews, Superintendent of Parks and Recreation Amanda Horstmann, Recreation Specialist Committee Members: At last month s meeting, Department of Planning staff presented a report that queried the Committee Members on their interest in the potential pursuit of either a mobile application, or a fullyresponsive, stand-alone website, for Parks and Recreation. A variety of pricing and approaches were provided to create this unique offering. After discussing options, the Committee Members directed the Department to continue their pursuit of additional information, with favoritism towards the mobile application. Department staff has completed its research and is ready to make a recommendation to the Committee on a vendor to provide this application. It was noted previously that in today s mobile-based world, many residents, and visitors to the City, utilize a smartphone to access a variety of information about it. According to a Fact Sheet released by the Pew Research Center on February 5, 2018, seventy-seven percent (77%) of Americans now own a smartphone. This percentage has more than doubled since 2011 and, based upon factors of ownership, may be even higher among Wildwood residents. In reviewing the City s website statistics, access to the website by smartphones has steadily increased over the last four (4) years, from twenty-six percent (26%) of users in 2014 to forty percent (40%) throughout Smartphone usage of the City s website continues to grow each year. The Department of Planning and Parks has been researching the costs and features associated with this type of technology. Smartphone apps can be visually appealing, user-friendly, and a great way to

2 bundle information for interested individuals. The Department is pursuing an application, which would be available on both ios and Android devices, as a way to provide parks and recreation information. This application would include the following featured items: About Us o Information regarding the City and its parks and trails system. Park Guide o Featured photograph, amenity list, and location map for all City parks. Trail Map o List of all trails, with amenity list, and location maps. This map may be interactive, where the trails would be overlaid on a Google Map. Events Calendar o Listings and a calendar of all special events and recreation programs scheduled within the City. Listing would have links to register. Rentable Pavilions o List of rentable pavilions, with details on amenities, maps, and a link to make online reservations. Social Media o Links to the City s three (3) social media accounts: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Contact Us o Ways to contact Staff members to report concerns, ask questions, etc. In determining the feasibility and usability of an application for this purpose, Department staff investigated a number of solutions and providers. Listed below are the companies and solutions provided, including their proposed costs for this product: CivicPlus: CivicPlus is the City s current website provider. The Department contacted it in the hope the existing information available on the City s website could be presented in a completely mobile format. This approach would result in the City s webpage displaying information in a visually appealing way on a smartphone, or other small device, since the website is responsive (the content adjusts to the size of the screen it is being viewed on). Unfortunately, while pages are responsive, more specific information found within the modules of the website are not. For example, when trying to view information on City parks, the items are part of the Facilities Module and displayed in a difficult to read, text-heavy version. This format was not the solution the Department was hoping to be available. CivicPlus could provide a mobile application; however, it would include all facets of the City s website, not just parks and recreation. Development Costs Annual Costs $5, $1, Feature Group USA: Feature Group USA is a local company, based in Chesterfield, that has provided applications for a number of local parks and recreation organizations, including the Cities of Sunset Hills and Chesterfield. All of the aforementioned components could be provided in the application. Its costs are: (2.)

3 Development Costs Annual Costs $13, $ REACH: REACH Digital is a Minnesota company that has provided mobile applications for a number of universities and recreation providers, including the YMCA s national organization, San Diego Parks and Recreation, and Greenwood, Indiana Parks and Recreation. The majority, if not all, of the proposed components could be provided in the application. The only question is if the Trails Map could be made to be interactive with a Google Maps base. The lesser cost of this application is reflected in the standard design of it, but do note the higher annual fee. There is some customization in colors and logos, but the design is like ordering off a menu. Its costs are: Development Costs Annual Costs $1, $2, In discussing the development of an application with a number of experts in the field, the option of a standalone parks and recreation website, which would be fully responsive, was identified as a possibility. There are plusses and minuses to each type of technology, which were discussed by the Committee at great length at its previous meeting. The downsides of mobile applications that were expressed included: an additional step in accessing information; the need to have users download updates to the application; and increased concerns by users of trackability. A fully responsive website allows users to get the information quickly, and in a visually appealing format, regardless of what device they are using, and would allow staff to update and provide the information to the public in less steps, given information would be located in just one (1) place. The downside to the website versus the application is the inability to send push notifications, as well as its unavailability without an internet connection, which is common in a number of the City parks and trails, especially in ravines and at lower elevations. To this end, two (2) companies were contacted for pricing, on both a website and an application, to provide a comparison and discussion starting point. Exploritech: Exploritech is a Naples, Florida based company. It provides full digital solutions and has a mobile application for Collier County, Florida Parks and Recreation. All proposed components could be provided in the application. Its costs are: Website Development Costs Website Annual Costs Between $13, & $16, $1, Application Development Costs Between $16, & $20, Application Annual Costs $ unknown maintenance fees ArchitectNow: ArchitectNow is a new Wildwood business located in the same building as Benedetto s on Main. This local company develops technologies, including mobile applications. All proposed components could be provided in the application. Its costs are: (3.)

4 Website Development Costs Website Annual Costs $21, Unknown Application Development Costs Application Annual Costs $40, Unknown With the direction of the Committee to pursue the development of a mobile application, and based upon the ability to complete the work as desired by the City, at an appropriate cost, the Department is recommending a mobile application, developed by Feature Group USA, be pursued. In so doing, the Department is seeking action from the Committee to forward a recommendation for this endorsement to the City Council. The Department has identified the necessary funds for this project in its Fiscal Year 2018 Budget. If any Committee Members should have any questions or comments in this regard, please feel free to contact the Department of Planning and Parks at (636) A presentation of this information is planned on this item at tonight s meeting. Thank you for your consideration of this item. (4.)

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22 City of Wildwood Parks and Recreation Development Proposal Presented by: Kevin Grossnicklaus ArchitectNow, LLC Main Street, Suite 200 Wildwood, MO

23 Table of Contents Table of Contents... 2 Overview... 3 Proposed Solution... 3 User Interfaces... 3 Responsive Website... 3 Mobile Apps... 4 Content Administration... 4 Project Pricing and Timeline... 5 Estimated Hours and Cost... 6 Billing Terms... 6 Key Assumptions... 6 Confidential Copyright 2018 ArchitectNow, LLC Page 2

24 Overview ArchitectNow is pleased to present the following proposal for partnering with the City of Wildwood in the development of a Parks and Recreation platform targeting the web and/or mobile devices. The information provided in this proposal is based upon our initial discussions and a review of existing functionality. ArchitectNow follows a very agile and dynamic design and development process and we collaborate very closely with customers on a frequent basis. Because of this agile process, and the tight integration required with both the CivicPlus and RecDesk systems, it is important to note that the estimates provided within this document are preliminary and could be finalized once a full design process is completed and we have confirmation from CivicPlus and RecDesk of their full integration capabilities. If you have any questions regarding the information provided in this proposal, please feel free to contact me at kvgros@architectnow.net. Proposed Solution This document proposes a number of potential options with the goal of providing a better end-user experience for the Wildwood Parks and Recreation platform. Both of the proposed solutions assume that the tools currently used to manage the back-end data (i.e. calendar, pavilion booking, etc) can be utilized via a secure API. This will allow employees to continue to utilize existing tools for updating this data and will allow the new website or mobile app to simply read this data from these systems and present it in an easier to utilize manner. If the existing systems (RecDesk and CivicPlus) are ultimately not able to support this type of integration, then a decision will have to be made as to whether additional work will be required to replace these systems for the Parks and Recreation department. User Interfaces In designing and implementing a new and more targeted user interface there are two possible directions to consider: a responsive website or a set of ios and Android apps. Both of these options are discussed below. We have attempted to provide some insight as to the benefits and/or tradeoffs of each approach. Our hope is that, regardless of which type of interface is developed, when a user needs to interact or provide data (i.e. reserve a pavilion) we will be able to link directly to the existing RecDesk page. This will eliminate the need to fully recreate all the capabilities currently provided by those systems. The estimates below make the assumption this is possible. Responsive Website One possible approach is the design and development of a standalone website focused on provided the best use experience for citizens wanting to learn about the Wildwood Parks and Recreation opportunities. This website can be developed to work equally as well on a laptop/desktop browser or on a mobile device or a tablet. The ability to target both desktop browsers as well as mobile browsers is achieved by our development team taking a mobile first approach and designing the content to be responsive (i.e. adjusts to display accordingly regardless of screen size). During the prototyping and design phase of the project we will ensure the user experience is well thought Confidential Copyright 2018 ArchitectNow, LLC Page 3

25 through on both a large screen and a small screen. During this process we anticipate what key actions an end-user may need to do on a specific type of environment. Developing a responsive website allows for the simple sharing of URL s to drive traffic to the new content. End-users are not required to navigate to any App Store and install a custom app on their devices. As most of the content discussed thus far has been very informational (and readonly) this approach would likely provide very professional results and help Wildwood build a better user experience for this content while being kept in a position to share this information with as little friction as possible. With a responsive website, the content will only be available when a user has access to a cell signal or an internet connection. Also, a responsive website will not support the capability of sending push notifications to users as would a mobile app. Mobile Apps Another possibility is the development of native mobile apps that are distributed via the Apple (ios) and Google (Android) stores. The core capability would generally be identical to what a responsive website would do but, in this instance, users would be required to go to the store on their device and manually install the Wildwood Parks and Recreation app on their phone or tablet. Links to the app in the store could be shared via and posted to the website so that citizens can easily find the app and install it. With mobile apps that are installed on individual devices the content will be available even when a user does not have an internet connection. Certain actions may not be available when working offline. This would include things such as reserving a pavilion. Data may also be out-of-date if a user does not have an internet connection. For example, when offline a user may not be seeing recent events as we would not be able to read the most current calendar of events from the server. Mobile apps offer a number of capabilities not available via a responsive web site. One example of this would be push notifications. If a user installs a mobile app we have the ability to push notifications and messages down to them. This could be very powerful way to stay in-front of people interested in Wildwood s content related to the Parks and Recreation department. To continue to leverage systems like RecDesk we will still link to the appropriate pages on their site for things like reserving a pavilion. This interaction between a mobile app and an existing website would be designed to be as seamless as possible. With regard to mobile apps, we recommend targeting both ios and Android platforms and the estimates below assume that the same app will be deployed to both of these stores. We can also assist the City of Wildwood in getting accounts with both Apple and Google for use in deploying and managing these apps in their store. Content Administration For purposes of this document it is understood that the current RecDesk and CivicPlus systems allow Wildwood employees to easily update and manage the following content: Generic page content Pavilion, Park, and Trail Information Confidential Copyright 2018 ArchitectNow, LLC Page 4

26 Calendar of Events Both of these systems are very feature rich and leveraged by numerous municipalities throughout the US. Recreating the capabilities would be very time intensive (and thus costly). For most usage scenarios we may be able to simply link to their content when necessary. For other scenarios we would want to be able to read their data (via an API) and display it professionally in either a responsive website or a mobile app. Being able to easily read data from these systems will allow us to design a better user experience but still leverage these systems for the management of the content. If either RecDesk or CivicPlus does not ultimately support the appropriate level of API integration allowing them to continue to be utilized for managing this content, we will need to design and implement a back-end administration utility to replicate the functionality of these systems. The scope and cost of this work will need to be defined based on a full review of the current utilization of these systems. It is important to note that this proposal does not anticipate the need for administrators to create new pages of generic content and that neither the proposed responsive website or mobile apps will be built using a fully dynamic Content Management System (CMS) such as WordPress. During the design phase it may be determined this capability is necessary and we would have to adjust the currently planned technology stack to support that accordingly. Project Pricing and Timeline The following table includes estimates of cost for the all services related to the design and development of both solutions described above. The total number of hours is an estimate and it is possible to limit the scope of the first phase of development to deliver a solution with less hours than what is stated below. It is also very possible to break a project like this out into a series of planned phases to be able to get key functionality to market faster while adding additional capabilities on after initial launch (or based on customer demand). As requested, two separate estimates have been provided: one for a responsive web interface and one for an ios and Android mobile app. All estimates assume the appropriate level of integration with CivicPlus and RecDesk. As part of ArchitectNow s standard development process these estimates will be reviewed frequently, and, upon completion of the initial design and prototyping process, we will work closely with Wildwood staff to ensure all necessary features and capabilities still fall within the planned scope and budget. If any roadblocks are found due to the lack of capability or support from CivicPlus or RecDesk we will work with Wildwood staff to make the appropriate project decisions. All work by ArchitectNow is performed on a time-and-materials basis, and all hours and costs below are estimates based on our current understanding of the current process and complexity of the features to be developed. Confidential Copyright 2018 ArchitectNow, LLC Page 5

27 Estimated Hours and Cost Development Step Hourly Rate Estimated Hours Estimated Cost Responsive Website $ $21,600 ios and Android App Development $ $40,500 The above hourly cost estimates reflect a roll-up of ArchitectNow s detailed estimates undertaken at a feature/capability level based on the provided information and our anticipated breakout of capabilities. The hourly rate or $135/hr reflects a Sr. ArchitectNow development resource. It may be possible to utilize Jr. resources at a lower hourly rate for specific tasks and features which would lower the overall cost of the implementation. This possibility will depend on the detailed project plan and the timing/availability of such resources. Billing Terms All work performed under this proposal will be billed on a time-and-materials basis. Any extra expenses will be billed at cost and receipts will be provided. Approval of project stakeholders will be required before any extra expenses are incurred. Invoices will be provided electronically, in PDF format, twice per month, covering the periods from the 1 st through the 15 th, and then the 16 th through the end of each month. Invoices may, when appropriate, be accompanied by an associated status report documenting current tasks, next scheduled tasks, upcoming scheduling conflicts, and currently identified risks to any deadlines, deliverables, or budgets. Payments on all invoices are due to ArchitectNow fifteen (15) days after receipt. Late payments will be subject to interest, charged at the rate of 2% per month on any late and unpaid balance. Key Assumptions ArchitectNow has made the following assumptions when recommending the above architecture and development process, and in estimating project costs and timeline: All software development will occur remotely on ArchitectNow computers and in a remotely accessible development environment. For purposes of maximum efficiency in an engagement with a relatively quick turnaround time, we will utilize the existing ALM ( application lifecycle management ) environment and source code repository for development. Upon completion of the project and payment of invoices, all source code and other assets will be delivered to project stakeholders electronically, and ArchitectNow resources will assist with deployment into the necessary production environments. To facilitate completion within the necessary timelines, client stakeholders will provide timely responses to key development questions and will provide quick feedback on early releases of the remaining functionality. Confidential Copyright 2018 ArchitectNow, LLC Page 6

28 Confidential Copyright 2018 ArchitectNow, LLC Page 7