One of the most notable contracts up for renewal, but missing from City Council agendas, is the High Performance Government Network contract.
This contract was signed by former Mayor Graham Richard in the final days of his administration in 2007. It was controversial for many reasons including the fact that several of his staff were going, or had gone, straight from the employ of the City to the employ of this then, newly formed non-profit organization. The biggest reason for the controversy – and one which was to have ramifications down the road for the Henry Administration – was the amount of the contract. It was a three-year contract with the annual amount set at $95,000. If you’ll also remember, the contract that was signed contained little information as to what exactly the City would receive for it’s $95K per year.
The ramifications of this was that several members of the City Council, most notable Councilman Mitch Harper (R-6th) and Councilwoman Liz Brown (R-At Large), took issue with the City sliding in a contract just under the amount that would have brought it before the City Council for approval. A few short years later, Councilwoman Brown would be successful in convincing the Council to lower that threshhold to $75,000.
Fast forward to the present. Â I made some inquiries earlier this week and learned that according to City Controller Pat Roller, the contract will not be renewed. Â No reason was given. Â I have not put in an FOIA request for the billed hours for this year, but according to the HPGN’s report to it’s members, last year saw the City of Fort Wayne receiving 410.25 hours. Â That works out to roughly $231.76 per hour.
I’ll see if I can learn why the contract wasn’t renewed.
Update @ 9:20 am: I have learned that Controller Roller is on vacation this week, so it may be next week before any further information is learned. In the meantime, if you would like more information about this topic, click here.
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