Johnsburg eyes live broadcast of Village Board meetings

An upgrade to Johnsburg’s village hall, allowing both amplification and live broadcasting of village meetings, has a cost estimate of just under $40,000.

After hearing the quote and details of the proposal, Village President Ed Hettermann asked Assistant Village Administrator Vinny Lamontagna to see what difference would be for a wired, as opposed to a Wi-Fi-based, system.

“I would like to see a hard-wired system also ... if we are going to do it. I don’t know if the technology is there yet for Wi-Fi,” Hettermann said.

It would likely cost more to run the lines for hard-wiring, Lamontagna said, but the equipment may be less expensive.

“We want to make sure it is done right,” Hettermann said.

The $40,000 quote would provide each trustee a dedicated microphone, the podium would have a microphone that can be controlled by village staff, and everything would be tied into the computer server with a transmitter and amplifier so it can be heard “even when there is a crowd,” Lamontagna said.

The provider he is working with is looking to add a feature that would allow residents to download a phone app that would amplify sound directly to their hearing aids. Amplification of the meetings for residents is an Americans with Disabilities Act requirement, Lamontagna said.

Another option, which the village is not yet pursuing, would provided battery-pack listening devices with a headset for residents in the board room.

The current system does not amplify sound in the room, but does pick up sound for the village’s video recording. That is uploaded the next day to YouTube by Lamontagna.

Part of the issue of adding speakers in the boardroom has been ensuring the system that picks up sound for the video does not echo when it is also amplified in the room, Lamontagna said.

He is also working with an IT consultant to allow the current closed-circuit video system to broadcast live on YouTube during meetings, with only a few seconds delay. The camera’s IP address must access the internet for it to work, Lamontagna said, adding that its not his area of expertise. The village does not have a dedicated IT employee.

“It is not my expertise but pretty sure I can learn it,” Lamontagna said. “Right now I go on YouTube and create the file.”

He is also working on a new johsnburg.org website, set to launch soon.

“We don’t want to go live on a Friday or a Monday” he said, noting that there will be a “30-day growing pain of going to a new website” as kinks are worked out.