The Barrington Hills Observer

Barrington Hills village board members say they want more information before deciding whether to livestream audio of government meetings online.

A similar suggestion to livestream video of meetings did not gain traction at a recent village board session after concern was raised about the potential cost.

A memo from acting Director of Administration Anna Paul and Clerk Nikki Panos states first-year costs for streaming audio or video would be $10,000 to $25,000, as proposed by Minnesota-based technology firm Granicus.

Panos told the village board livestreaming video ultimately would cost more than audio because of a need to buy cameras and other equipment. More information is expected to be provided to the village board before they are expected to addresses the audio issue again July 23.

Larger towns have an advantage over smaller municipalities with few employees, such as Barrington Hills, when it comes to offering live online video, Panos said.

“They have dedicated control rooms, dedicated staff (for) livestreaming, dedicated staff making sure that this (video) works for every meeting,” she said at last week’s village board session.

Barrington Hills posts audio of meetings, such as the village board’s and plan commission’s, on its website after the meetings are held. Officials said the streaming system offered by Granicus would eliminate the need for a Barrington Hills employee to handle that.

To read the full article in the Daily Herald, click here.

Also, of related interest is the Daily Herald’s January 8, 2018 article Why Carpentersville might stop video recording, streaming board meetings , which stated in part:

“Carpentersville officials are considering cheaper alternatives for video recording and streaming village board meetings — a service that costs the village more than $17,000 per year.  Purchasing its own cameras and operating the technology in-house are among the village’s options for replacing the videographer hired to record each meeting, IT Director Kevin Goethals said. To save money and staff time, the village board is also contemplating whether to cease recording altogether.

“There’s nothing not transparent about this open meeting and not broadcasting it for this kind of money,” Trustee John O’Sullivan said. “This is a ridiculous waste of taxpayers’ funds.”

Videography services cost the village $575 per meeting, resulting in an annual price tag of roughly $13,800, Goethals said. The village spends an additional $3,600 per year to broadcast the meetings live online and make them available for replay through Granicus, a digital services company, he said.

…A maximum of 30 people watch the meetings live, and videos are typically replayed 50 to 100 times, Goethals said. To some trustees, including O’Sullivan, those numbers aren’t worth spending the money on recording devices.

“Forgive me, but the cost per viewer is outrageous for the taxpayer,” he said. “These are public meetings. Thirty viewers are welcome to come here and see it live.”