Website Design and Development Addenda 2

The San Joaquin Council of Governments (SJCOG) is the planning, financing and coordinating agency for the San Joaquin region overseeing transportation, housing and habitat conservation. SJCOG is a joint-powers authority with a board of directors comprised of elected representatives from Escalon, Lathrop, Lodi, Manteca, Mountain House, Ripon, San Joaquin County, Stockton, and Tracy.

SJCOG’s broad range of responsibilities includes managing the Measure K transportation sales tax program, collecting county demographic and economic data, airport land use planning, and regional air quality. SJCOG partners with a network of local governments, private organizations and community groups to deliver a variety of local, state and federal programs that support the streets, roads, highways, public transit, and other transportation resources that help our residents get where they need to be. It is also responsible for assigning each city and the county its fair share of affordable housing.

SJCOG is seeking proposals from qualified firms to design, develop, and host SJCOG’s website. This will be a “concept to completion” process. The website should include a custom high-end web design and development to support easy access to public information, allow for interactivity, and be easy to update and expand.

Project Overview

The existing website is currently maintained through in-house resources by the Communications team. While the current format and layout generally meet our needs, we are seeking a provider that can offer greater flexibility and ease of editing. In particular, we are looking for a platform that allows staff to freely edit and update content without being limited by fixed or uneditable modules, while also allowing us to control which users have access to edit specific pages/sections based on their department or role. An opportunity exists to enhance the site to better reflect the role and activities of SJCOG while incorporating modern web technology to support outreach, communication, information sharing, and business functions.

Project Description

SJCOG is seeking to enhance its existing website through targeted design and functionality improvements while maintaining the overall strengths of the current site. The project’s primary focus is to provide a flexible, easy-to-navigate website that is simple for staff to maintain and update internally.

The selected platform should include a user-friendly content management system that allows staff to easily add, edit, and manage content without relying on fixed or difficult-to-modify modules. SJCOG is seeking a solution that offers greater flexibility in page layouts and content presentation while maintaining a clean, professional, and accessible user experience.

The new site should:

• Refresh and enhance the current look and feel while maintaining brand consistency.
• Provide a cohesive and intuitive navigation structure and user experience.
• Comply with current web accessibility and web standards.
• Be fully responsive and functional across desktop, tablet, and mobile devices.
• Allow for flexible content management and future scalability.
• Include analytics and reporting capabilities.
• Support secure, reliable and efficient website administration.
• Provide the ability to integrate with third-party tools and services, as needed.
• Include training and documentation for staff responsible for maintaining the website.
• Provide recommendations for refinements, modernization opportunities, and functionality improvements that enhance the user experience and long-term maintainability of the website.

Objective

SJCOG’s primary objective is to provide information, increase public awareness, support brand identity, and offer convenient access to organizational documents, programs, and services. The website should effectively communicate SJCOG’s mission and activities through clear messaging, intuitive navigation, and engaging visuals.

The goal of the SJCOG website is to serve as an accessible public communication tool that provides simple electronic access to information and reflects the Agency’s work in a clear, professional, and user-friendly format. While the current site generally meets operational needs, SJCOG is seeking enhancements that improve flexibility, usability, accessibility, mobile responsiveness, and long-term content management capabilities.

Proposers may reference SJCOG’s existing website ( https://www.sjcog.org ) to understand current content structure, functionality, and user experience. The existing site should be viewed as a baseline only, and proposals should not be constrained by current design or architecture. SJCOG is seeking a modernized solution that improves flexibility, usability, accessibility, mobile responsiveness, and long-term content management capabilities.