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TO: Mayor John Laesch
FROM: Bryan Handell, Commander, Bureau of Administrative Services
Mike Kaufman, Assistant Chief of Support Services
Ram Tyagi, Chief Information Officer
Jeff Anderson, Deputy Chief Information Officer
DATE: July 16, 2026
SUBJECT:
A Resolution authorizing the Director of Purchasing to acquire Public Safety radio networking equipment from L3Harris, Melbourne, FL for $244,506.45.
PURPOSE:
This resolution is requesting the purchase of critical networking equipment to support the L3Harris radio system utilized by Public Safety and Public Work departments.
BACKGROUND:
Resolution R23-384 authorized the purchase and implementation of the P25 radio system. Transitioning to the P25 standard upgrades the City to a system that delivers proven interoperability with other Public Safety partners-including all state and federal agencies-and provides improved scalability and significantly enhanced coverage.
This purchase is for the required networking critical spare equipment and dispatching equipment needed to complete the installation of P25.
DISCUSSION:
To avoid potentially lengthy outages due to equipment failure and subsequent shipping delays, the City is contractually obligated to keep critical spare equipment onsite. This equipment is not manufactured by L3Harris and therefore could see ordering and shipping delays if failure occurs.
During the implementation of the P25 system city IT staff negotiated with L3Harris not only on pricing but on what equipment was necessary for replacement and redundancy. Staff is confident this equipment is what is needed to avoid a lengthy outage in case of hardware failure.
Funds are available in account 211-1280-419.38-03 for this purchase.
IMPACT STATEMENT:
Providing onsite critical spare equipment to support the L3Harris radio system utilized by Public Safety and Public Work departments is necessary to reduce any downtime caused by a failure of critical networking equipment.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Request the proposed resolution be approved.
cc: Finance Committee
CITY OF AURORA, ILLINOIS
RESOLUTION NO. _________
DATE OF PASSAGE ________________
title
A Resolution authorizing the Director of Purchasing to acquire Public Safety radio networking equipment from L3Harris, Melbourne, FL for $244,506.45.
body
WHEREAS, the City of Aurora has a population of more than 25,000 persons and is, therefore, a home rule unit under subsection (a) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution of 1970; and
WHEREAS, subject to said Section, a home rule unit may exercise any power and perform any function pertaining to its government and affairs for the protection of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare; and
WHEREAS, the City utilizes the L3Harris OpenSky radio system currently; and
WHEREAS, providing onsite critical spare equipment to support the L3Harris radio system utilized by Public Safety and Public Work departments is necessary to reduce any downtime caused by a failure of critical networking equipment; and
WHEREAS, funds are available in account 211-1280-419.38-03 for this purpose.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Aurora, Illinois, as follows: the Director of Purchasing is hereby authorized to issue purchase orders for services described in this resolution and as more fully set forth in the contract attached hereto.