Currently, Long Beach Parks, Recreation, and Marine users do not have a way to book park amenities or facilities. What we're trying to offer to the public is the ability to: view what is available, who is using the facilities, schedule their own use of the space, check into the space when you get there, and release the space if someone does not show up. It would be important to have a public-facing time counter to ensure that one group does not overstay their reservation.

Requirements:

• Mapping solution that integrates with GIS
• Geolocation that tells you what is available based on where you are
• Integrates with ActiveNet
• Export reports

Questions & Answers

General

What is challenge-based procurement?  

Challenge-based procurement lets us as City staff articulate our challenge without prescribing how we want it to be solved. We are asking for tech vendor insights into how we might solve this challenge. If you think you can help, take 30 minutes and fill out our application.  

Will the pilot end after 6 months or is there potential for the pilot to carry on? 

The timelines have some flexibility but proposers should not expect the pilot period to last longer than 6 months. The timeline for the pilot project will be finalized during the project scoping process. For questions on transitioning to a larger scale project, see question 5.  

What happens with leftover assets after the pilot process?  

Any equipment used will not be retained or considered property of the City or participating authorities. All products piloted as part of the Smart City Challenge will be returned at the end of the pilot and/or the partner is expected to remove them in a timely manner. 

How does the city plan to transition successful pilots to larger-scale projects?  

We will have a robust evaluation process that is meant to assess whether the pilot is meeting the City’s strategic goals. If the City chooses to move forward with a larger contract, there is the potential for the opportunity to go through another competitive RFP process.  

Can you provide more information regarding the Smart City Initiative? 

More information here: http://www.longbeach.gov/smartcity/pilot-programs/2021-smart-city-challenge/ 

To learn more, proposers may contact Estefania Zavala, Digital Innovation Program Manager at estefania.zavala@longbeach.gov and Ryan Kurtzman, Smart City Program Manager at ryan.kurtzman@longbeach.gov.  

How many hours is the vendor expected to allocate on a weekly basis to the City during the pilot phase? 

The hourly expectations and schedule for the pilot project will be finalized during the project scoping process.  

Is there a stipend or any funds available for the vendor during the pilot period? 

No 

If a desired outcome is achieved before the end of the pilot phase can a contract be entered into early? 

Yes, after an appropriate and robust evaluation process. If the City chooses to move forward with a larger contract, there is the potential for the opportunity to go through another competitive RFP process. 

Who owns the Intellectual Property created? 

The solution is owned by the vendor and the City’s data is owned by the City.  

Is the City open to accepting solutions that include long-term partnerships with the vendor?   

The pilot project should be able to stand alone and should not depend on a long term partnership.  

If I own a company that usually consults on these types of challenges, should I apply for just one challenge or for every challenge if I think I have a solution? 

We would welcome the same proposer applying to multiple challenges. Please note, however, that if selected to provide a solution for multiple challenges, time constraints may be a challenge. 

Will the city permit applications from one company on multiple challenges? 

Yes. 

Challenge-Specific Questions

What does the existing reservation system look like?  

The Department has a reservation system (ActiveNet) for fee-based reservations and has hundreds of reservations each year for facilities and open spaces. For these types of reservations, Parks has a customer-based system where customers create a profile and pay online. In Fiscal Year 2019 (Oct 2018 – Sept 2019) Parks, Recreation and Marine (Parks) issued 835 Field Permits issued for more than 154,000 hours of field use, 1,937 picnic permits, and had 787 community center reservations.   

The current challenge is focused on non-fee based park spaces like basketball and tennis courts, that are used for drop-in play and where no reservation system exists for these park assets. Unlike the existing fee-based reservation system, Parks is seeking an interactive, mobile friendly, real-time reservation and check-in system that is available quickly to the masses, is not associated with a cost to use/make a reservation and is used by park visitors to know what drop-in play amenities is available and when and for the Department to assess real-time usage.  

 Please provide a list of the reservable facility types. 

For a list of reservable facility types visit http://longbeach.gov/park/park-and-facilities/directory/facility-reservations/. However, the current challenge is not focused on these fee-based reservable amenities. The current challenge is focused on non-fee based park spaces like basketball and tennis courts, that are used for drop-in play and where no reservation system exists for these park assets. Unlike the existing fee-based reservation system, Parks is seeking an interactive, mobile-friendly, real-time reservation and check-in system that is available quickly to the masses, is not associated with a cost to use/make a reservation, and is used by park visitors to know what drop-in play amenities is available and when and for the Department to assess real-time usage.  

Will the pilot solution be used for reservations for all facility types, or for only a subset?  

The pilot solution is intended to be used for the subset of non-fee-based drop-in park sites like basketball and tennis courts, that are used for drop-in play and where no reservation system exists for these park assets. Unlike the existing fee-based reservation system, Parks is seeking an interactive, mobile-friendly, real-time reservation and check-in system that is available quickly to the masses, is not associated with a cost to use/make a reservation and is used by park visitors to know what drop-in play amenities is available and when and for the Department to assess real-time usage.  

If for a subset, for which facility types? 

Non-fee-based, drop-in play amenities including, but not limited to: basketball courts, tennis courts, skateparks, archery range, indoor/outdoor fitness equipment, sports fields, picnic tables or gazebos. 

What are the success criteria? 

User-friendly and easily accessible to the public  

Interactive  

Mobile based and include spatial visualization 

Real-time analytics for Park staff  

Encourage residents to visit parks and use our public amenities that are free to the public  

Does a successful pilot result in full implementation, and for what contract term? 

Full implementation and a long-term contract would be based on what is learned during the pilot and ultimately contingent upon the success of the pilot, the long-term cost and sustainability of the solution, and the user rate of park visitors. These details we be discussed during the contract negotiation.  

What functionality is ActiveNet used for? 

Fee-based reservations for facilities, picnics, and contractual classes.  

ActiveNet does not currently include non-fee-based drop-in play locations, which is the topic of the challenge.  

What data needs to be integrated? 

Integration of data is not required. What is desirable for any solution is the ability to upload the data collected on the new platform easily into an excel sheet.  

Can an API for ActiveNet integration be provided? 

ActiveNet does not currently include non-fee-based drop-in play locations. However, if the recommended solution identifies an API for ActiveNet integration that meets the challenge criteria, it would be considered/evaluated. It should be noted that adding non-fee based drop-in play sites into ActiveNet comes with a cost because ActiveNet charges per reservation. Drop-in play sites are meant to remain free for the public to use, so this would increase the cost to the Department for offering expanded reservations through ActiveNet.