Title
Contract Continuation with Enterprise FM Trust-Vehicle Leasing Agreement for the Gainesville Police Department (NB)
This item is a request for the City Commission to authorize the waiver of the bid process and continue the participation in the ongoing contract with Enterprise FM Trust for an additional five years.
Explanation
The Police Department has had an ongoing contract with Enterprise FM Trust since 2013. The department needed the ability to obtain vehicles to be utilized in a covert capacity for various investigations. The nature of these investigations necessitates the ability to swap out these vehicles frequently to prevent or alleviate concerns the vehicle compromised the investigations. Enterprise also works with other North Florida agencies such as Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, Flagler County Sheriff’s Office and the City of Lake City, which keeps us all informed of what other agencies are experiencing with their undercover operations vehicles. Under the existing contract, during the past 12 months, GPD has used this contract to provide 5 vehicles to command staff so their assigned fleet vehicles could be outfitted for use by temporary staff assigned to the Police Service Technicians.
We have obtained the results of recent RFPs from the State of Florida for rental vehicles, the City of Orlando and the Preferred Rate Agreement offered to local governmental entities in Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Martin Counties. The prices paid under our agreement with Enterprise average $300 to $400 less per vehicle per month than the rates offered to the other cities and are $800 to $1000 less per vehicle per month than the State of Florida contract pricing for vehicle rentals. Purchasing conducted the same search and had the same findings.
The services provided by Enterprise Fleet Management are uniquely specialized in their provision of vehicles utilized by several North Florida law enforcement agencies. The specialized services provided are detailed below.
Through Enterprise we are assigned a dedicated Account Team that is local in North Florida that we see 2-4 times per year as needed. The Account Manager assists us through the ordering and replacement strategy every year. Enterprise also provides us with a dedicated Account Fleet Coordinator to help with administrative, billing and tag questions. We have a dedicated Delivery Coordinator with Enterprise. All three people have been assigned to the City of Gainesville since the contract was initiated in 2013. The services provided by Enterprise are comprehensive. The Account Manager does all of the legwork in managing these vehicles. The representative meets with us 2-3 times a year to review vehicles that will suit our need or vehicles that have not worked well. She gives us a schedule of when the current vehicles are terminating off lease and advises when we need to start the planning and ordering process.
They continually ask and improve how they do business with us and bring more ideas to the table. Once the needs are outlined, Enterprise runs all of the makes and models that can be delivered within our timeframe and makes sure they are equipped properly for the job, without unnecessary upgrades or additional charges. We are also provided with the option of 1 or 2 year leases, with as many mileage patterns for each vehicle as we need. This means we do not have to go to multiple dealers for pricing because she runs all of the options and compiles the least expensive ones in every category. She also informs us of manufacturers who are on a longer build schedule than others so we can weigh the cost of waiting. Once vehicles are set to come in, Enterprise coordinates any special delivery needs we may have. They allow several delivery methods such as pickup from local Enterprise branches, a neutral location, dealerships or direct delivery.
Vehicle damage has been repaired by Enterprise at a fraction of the price we were able to obtain from other repair service providers. Example: A vehicle received damage to its side during an investigation. We received 3 bids to fix the item which came in at $1,300.00. Enterprise received the vehicle and repaired it for $1080.00. This is not written into the contract but as a company they fix/repair the vehicles at a much lower rate than is available elsewhere. In addition, ASO has had the same results after turning in vehicles which required repairs.
Due to the low pricing, unique requirements of undercover law enforcement, and history of prior exemplary service, we are asking that the City Manager/Commission 1) Waive the bid requirement; and 2) Continue use of this contract for another 5 years.
Fiscal Note
Funds in the amount of approximately $100,000 per year are available in the Gainesville Police Departments general budget.
Recommendation
The City Commission: 1) authorize the waiver of the bid process; and 2) continue the participation in the ongoing contract with Enterprise FM Trust for an additional five years.