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City of Robertsdale, Alabama

One Website. One Staff Platform. One Connected City.

Digital City Platform Proposal — Not simply a new website. A digital foundation for the future of Robertsdale.

Prepared by

Hebner Solutions, LLC

Proposal Date

August 2026

Attention

Deborah Toler · Robertsdale Building

Prepared for

City of Robertsdale, Alabama

Executive Summary

The City asked. The answer is yes.

The City of Robertsdale asked Hebner Solutions whether we could redesign its website to provide a look, organization, and functionality similar to the City of Foley website.

YES

Hebner Solutions can provide the public-facing functionality expected from a modern municipal website, including:

  • Departments
  • City news & announcements
  • Events & calendars
  • Public documents
  • Agendas & meeting minutes
  • Forms
  • Employment opportunities
  • Contact directories
  • Emergency information
  • Search
  • Maps
  • Mobile accessibility
  • ADA/WCAG-focused accessibility
  • Staff content management

But Robertsdale has an additional opportunity.

Instead of building only another informational website, Hebner Solutions can build the public website on top of an interactive City platform.

"Here is the information you need."

"Here is the information you need — and you can take care of it right here."

Everything residents need. Everything staff needs. One connected City platform.

Comparison

Traditional Municipal Website vs. Connected City Platform

This represents the general traditional municipal website model and is not a criticism of any specific city. Foley demonstrates what a good modern public municipal website can look like.

Traditional Municipal Website

  • Primarily publishes information
  • Pages and documents
  • Residents read information
  • Forms may be downloaded
  • Services may link to outside systems
  • Separate applications may require separate accounts
  • Staff primarily manage website content
  • Website and internal City systems are generally separate
  • Plugins/extensions may be used to add functionality
  • Data may exist across multiple independent systems
Proposed

Proposed Robertsdale Platform

  • Publishes information AND performs work
  • Interactive applications
  • Residents can complete tasks
  • Digital forms and workflows
  • Secure resident accounts
  • Secure staff accounts
  • Department dashboards
  • Centralized reporting
  • Payment integrations
  • Automated notifications
  • Document management
  • Live status tracking
  • Role-based permissions
  • Cross-department workflows
  • API integrations
  • One central entry point for City operations

"A website tells people where to go. A web application can help them get it done."

Architecture

Built as a System, Not Assembled From Plugins

Many traditional websites add functionality by installing separate plugins or extensions — each from different developers, each with its own updates, licensing, and maintenance.

Traditional

Website
Plugin: Calendar
Plugin: Forms
Plugin: Search
Plugin: Security
Plugin: Documents
Plugin: Events
Plugin: SEO
Plugin: Payments
Multiple dependencies

Robertsdale

Unified Application
Residents
Staff
Departments
Payments
Documents
Workflows
Reports
Connected architecture

Specialized services such as payment processors, GIS systems, emergency notification providers, accounting software, or government databases may still need integrations. The difference: Robertsdale's application is designed to connect to these services rather than require residents and staff to experience them as disconnected systems — wherever integration is technically and contractually possible.

The Problem

What if City staff didn't need 10, 15, or 20 different places to work?

Municipal employees often work across many different software platforms — each with different usernames, passwords, interfaces, reporting, databases, and vendors.

Email
Website
Permitting
Payments
Documents
Calendar
Reporting
Citizen Requests
Inspections
Utilities
HR
Accounting
GIS
Work Orders
Notifications
Records

Robertsdale

Staff Portal

One centralized workspace

"One login. The information you need. Based on your job."

Where APIs and integrations are available, the Robertsdale platform can connect existing systems and give employees a more centralized place to access information and complete work. It does not mean every existing vendor must immediately be replaced.

Accounts

Role-Based City Accounts

Every City employee can receive their own secure account. Permissions are determined by their role — so each person sees only what they need.

Mayor — Executive City Dashboard

Potential access:

City-wide activity
Department summaries
Revenue/payment summaries
Permit activity
Open citizen requests
Department performance
Major projects
Upcoming deadlines
Operational trends
Alerts
Reports

Technology Audit

Before We Can Give Robertsdale an Exact Integration Price

We can provide an accurate price for the public website and core platform. But determining the exact cost of a fully centralized City system requires understanding what Robertsdale currently uses.

What we'll need an inventory of:

  • Current website hosting
  • Domain/DNS provider
  • Email provider
  • Payment processors
  • Utility billing software
  • Accounting/finance software
  • Permit software
  • Inspection software
  • Business license software
  • GIS/mapping systems
  • Document management
  • Agenda/minutes software
  • Public records systems
  • Parks/recreation software
  • HR/payroll
  • Employee scheduling
  • Work order systems
  • Asset management
  • Emergency notifications
  • SMS providers
  • Online forms
  • Citizen request software
  • Existing software contracts
  • Number of City users/departments

Complete the Technology Inventory

For every system, tell us: name, vendor, purpose, department, login URL, number of users, cost, contract expiration, whether the vendor provides API access, primary contact, and notes.

Or add systems manually below. Your entries are saved securely to this proposal.

System NameVendorPurposeDepartmentLogin URLUsersCostContract Exp.API?Contact

Why the Audit Matters

We don't want to guess.

Suppose Robertsdale currently uses 15 different systems. Some connect easily, some need custom integration, some can't be integrated, and some can be replaced. Hebner Solutions will evaluate each one honestly.

CONNECT

Connect the existing system directly.

REPLACE

The Robertsdale platform may be capable of replacing it.

KEEP

Continue using the existing system but provide easier access.

CUSTOM

Develop a specialized integration.

NOT AVAILABLE

Vendor does not provide a supported integration path.

This creates an honest technology roadmap and allows Hebner Solutions to provide accurate pricing — rather than guessing at integration costs before knowing what systems Robertsdale actually uses.

Project Phases

A Phased Path to Launch

The work is organized into clear phases so Robertsdale can see progress and receive value early — without waiting for every internal system to be integrated.

1

Discovery & Technology Audit

  • Meet with departments
  • Inventory existing systems
  • Review current website
  • Define accessibility requirements
  • Define migration scope
2

Design

  • Public website design
  • Navigation & department structure
  • Mobile experience
  • Accessibility architecture
  • Staff Console UX
3

Core Development

  • Public website & Staff Console
  • Authentication & user roles
  • Content management
  • Documents & search
  • Core reporting
4

Content Migration

  • Existing pages & documents
  • Images & departments
  • Public records
  • Redirects
  • SEO preservation
5

Integrations

  • Approved existing City systems
  • Payments
  • APIs
  • Notifications
  • Data connections
6

Testing

  • Functional & mobile testing
  • Accessibility testing
  • Security review
  • Staff acceptance testing
7

Training

  • Administrator training
  • Department training
  • Documentation
  • Staff onboarding
8

Launch

  • DNS transition
  • Production deployment
  • Monitoring
  • Support
9

Continuous Improvement

  • New workflows
  • Additional integrations
  • Automation
  • Department expansion

Timeline

Estimated Timeline

Estimated core website + platform: 8–16 weeks. Advanced integrations may extend beyond initial launch and can be deployed in phases — so the public website is not delayed waiting for every internal system.

00

weeks for core launch

A staged rollout reduces risk and delivers value earlier:

1

Launch 1: Public Website + Staff Console

2

Launch 2: Resident Services

3

Launch 3: Department Integrations

4

Launch 4: Advanced Reporting & Automation

Pricing

Preliminary Estimate

Final pricing subject to discovery and approved scope.

Preliminary Estimate · Final Pricing Subject to Discovery and Approved Scope

Initial Platform Design & Development

$65,000 – $120,000

  • Discovery & information architecture
  • UI/UX design & responsive website
  • Core City web application
  • Staff Console & authentication
  • Role & department architecture
  • Content management, news, events, documents
  • Search & core forms
  • Accessibility-focused development
  • Initial reporting framework
  • Testing, deployment & training

Content & Document Migration

$3,000 – $8,000

Depending upon:

  • Number of pages, documents, images
  • Historical records
  • Formatting requirements
  • Accessibility remediation
  • Legacy content quality

Technology & Integration Audit

Included with approved project discovery

Identifies current systems, integration opportunities, replacement opportunities, API availability, security considerations, licensing, integration complexity, and a recommended roadmap.

Custom Integrations

To be determined after the audit

We cannot responsibly quote integrations until we know exactly which systems Robertsdale currently uses and what technical access those vendors provide. Integrations can be quoted individually.

Monthly Management

Ongoing Service Plans

Three transparent monthly options. Unused development hours do not automatically roll over unless included by contract. Major new systems, third-party licensing, and major integrations are separately quoted.

Essential City Care

$2,000/month

  • Managed hosting & SSL/security
  • Platform monitoring & backups
  • Core software maintenance & security updates
  • Performance & uptime monitoring
  • Routine technical support
  • Monthly system health review
RECOMMENDED

City Managed

$3,000/month

  • Everything in Essential
  • Priority support
  • Staff account management
  • Content assistance
  • Accessibility monitoring
  • Up to 5 hours monthly development/support
  • Monthly analytics & reporting
  • Quarterly technology review

Digital City Partnership

$5,000/month

  • Everything in City Managed
  • Priority City-wide support
  • Up to 15 hours monthly development/support
  • New workflow & automation development
  • Integration maintenance
  • Department onboarding & quarterly training
  • Executive reporting assistance
  • Priority feature development

Next Steps

How to Move Forward

1

Proposal Review

City reviews this preliminary proposal.

2

Discovery Meeting

Meet with leadership and department representatives.

3

Technology Inventory

City provides existing software/vendor information.

4

Final Scope & Price

Hebner Solutions provides final implementation scope, integration roadmap, pricing, and schedule.

"Don't just redesign the City's website. Build Robertsdale's digital infrastructure."

Acceptance

Preliminary Proposal Acknowledgment

This is NOT final contract acceptance. By acknowledging, you confirm you have reviewed this preliminary proposal and would like Hebner Solutions to prepare the next-stage project scope.

Please acknowledge the statement above to continue.

© 2026 Hebner Solutions, LLC · Preliminary proposal. Final pricing subject to discovery and approved scope.