@d72d5211 I like the way you're thinking but wearing my cynical hat that seems unlikely to work. A few software architects will each have a different opinion about the tech stack, each council will want to have influence based on their size. And you know council staff will insist on their own unique set of requirements. That's usually why a large enterprise system implementation balloons in cost and how the vendors make their money. 

 @d72d5211 I have experience of one council which essentially operated as a fiefdom. The software architect had a cosy relationship with the CEO. He was busy with the green fields development of a building consent system that essentially would replicate an off the shelf system that other councils were using because he wanted to do it better and, because you know, "software development is cheap".