REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
June 15, 2017
FROM: KEVIN R. MEIKLE, Director of Aviation
Airports Department
SUBJECT
Title
Approve a First Amendment to the Agreement between the City of Fresno and Air-Transport IT Services, Inc., to provide one additional engineer for maintenance and technical support of airline common use and related facilities at Fresno Yosemite International Airport in the amount of $100,000. (Council District 4)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Council approve the First Amendment to the Implementation and Service Agreement for Common Use - Extended Airline System Environment (EASE) and EASE-FX Flight Information Display System (FIDS) Displays for Gate Expansion, between the City and Air-Transport IT Services, Inc. (AirIT), effective June 1, 2013, to provide one additional engineer for maintenance and technical support of common use and related facilities at Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT) in the amount of $100,000, and authorize the Director of Aviation to execute the First Amendment and related documents.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In April 2013 Council approved a five-year agreement with AirIT to provide and support an airline common use operating platform, which supports passenger processing at the check-in/ticket counters and gates, flight information displays and other related airport infrastructure. The First Amendment will supplement the Agreement by adding one additional full time support staff for ten months through the term of the Agreement, which is necessary due to the increasing demands associated with the growth at FAT.
Background
Since 2013 passenger traffic at FAT has grown by 13.4% and is continuing to grow, which impacts the demand on managing and supporting Information Technology (IT) infrastructure associated with airport operations. The existing Agreement provides for one full time staff on-site and access to a 24/7 support center. The growth in activity at FAT necessitates additional full time on-site support so that response times and work will not impact airline and related operations.
The AirIT platform for airline common use operations at FAT and at many other airports avoids costly, disruptive, and time consuming expansion of existing facilities. It maximizes facility utilization by allowing airlines to operate seamlessly from any counter or gate position instead of only from dedicated proprietary counters and gates. FAT first deployed the AirIT platform in 2008. The AirIT platform has and continues to significantly extend the useful life of the facility, enables airlines to better accommodate peak demand at the ticketing counters and allows for flexible gate management for off-schedule arrivals and departures.
Work performed under the Agreement is related to airline operations, for which responsibility rest entirely with the airlines under United States Department of Transportation guidance. This responsibility cannot be shifted to the City. In addition, City staff does not possess the knowledge and experience to perform AirIT duties. Therefore, work under this Agreement cannot be performed by the City.
The AirIT platform is part of FAT’s robust IT environment - including all airport operations such as airlines, Customs and Border Protection, Transportation Security Administration, rental car operations, security functions, etc. - which is separate from the City’s IT systems (email, desktop functions, etc.). The Airport continues to be supported by the City’s Information Services Department (ISD) for all City-related IT functions, as with all City departments. Airports regularly coordinates with ISD on FAT’s IT infrastructure needs to ensure proper best practices are utilized.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378, this is not a project for the purposes of CEQA.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
The City's Local Preference Ordinance was not applied because this First Amendment does not include a bid or award of a construction or services contract.
FISCAL IMPACT
The existing five year Agreement is for $1,916,475, payable in five annual installments of $383,295. Airports is now in year five of the Agreement. The First Amendment will increase the final payment to include ten months of the additional employee, for a total of $483,295. The total of all payments under the Support Agreement, including the First Amendment, will be $2,016,475. The First Amendment will enable the airports to more efficiently accommodate the passenger growth in recent years, which is directly tied to fostering regional economic development. Funding for the First Amendment is available in the Airports Department FY17 Adopted budget. There is no impact to the General Fund from this action.
Attachments:
First Amendment to the Agreement