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Published On: 12/18/14

Upgrades Will Stream Council Meetings Live, Offer High-Def

By: DispatchAdmin via Maryland Coast Dispatch

OCEAN CITY – The town is targeting a higher level of transparency with the approval of new software that will enable council meetings to be streamed live as well as recording and making related information easier to access.

During Monday evening’s Mayor and City Council legislative meeting, City Manager David Recor presented a contract to install legislative management software into council chambers that will allows for council meetings to be streamed live, plus much more.

“As part of our discussion regarding the design of the council chambers’ audio/video project, we initiated contact and solicited proposals from a number of relevant companies to provide the town with Legislative Management Software,” Recor said. “This initiative is linked directly to the town’s strategic plan, and we think that it demonstrates value and benefit to both the citizens as well as the organization.”

According to Recor, three companies were solicited for legislative management software and Accela offered the best quality product and lowest cost package.

“The features of this legislative software management tool provide the public timely, dependable, transparent, and organized access to information and issues that are scheduled on your [Mayor and City Council] agenda for policy decisions,” Recor said.

Recor submitted Accela software will provide the ability to stream meetings live on the town’s website. The video will also be made available for public viewing within minutes after adjournment, negating the need to compress, upload and code each video clip, which often takes up to four or more hours to complete.

Accela stores information on a “cloud,” which provides better streaming and storage abilities. It also enables high-definition videos, an option that will be utilized once the council chambers’ equipment is upgraded.

“One of the things I have always noticed and hoping to achieve through this initiative was improving the video quality particularly on our television station,” Recor said. “High definition video will be enabled via the town’s website immediately following the launch of this software application, and it will be available via television through Comcast once the chamber equipment upgrade is completed.”

Recor reminded the council when Comcast’s governmental affairs director was in attendance a few weeks ago he explained Comcast determines how to assign its bandwidth for high definition based on consumption.

“We need to be able to demonstrate a high level of consumption for Comcast to designate a portion of its bandwidth for high definition television. That opportunity will present itself, but we are planting the seed for that negotiation not only through the equipment we will be acquiring for the chamber but the software now that we are going to run behind the scenes,” Recor said.

Recor furthered, Accela also offers an agenda and minutes management package that includes hot links to connect each agenda item with coordinating video footage with the click of a mouse.

Additionally, another module enables the public to view an online list of various board and commissions, including the duties and responsibilities of each board, annual meeting schedules, a list of the board members and their terms of office.

“Over time the real value in this is the creation and development of a searchable database of public records and information that is made available and accessible to the public,” Recor said. “The real beauty behind all of this is all the modules will be linked together, so if we decide we want to broadcast the meetings of our Planning and Zoning Commission, there lays our challenge to demonstrate our commitment, and I believe we will have a better negotiation with Comcast for the high definition designation.”

Accela’s contract is $10,776 per year for a three-module program with a 10-percent discount and no pre-pay costs. The month-to-month contract comes to $898 per month and can be terminated at any time with 30 days’ notice. Also, the town maintains full rights to all videos and documents, and Accela provides backup of all database information and files through a downloadable backup or DVD.

“It is pretty exciting and I am sure all of you share the enthusiasm particularly in this world of instant that we all live in and the environment of increased and improved transparency,” Recor said.

Council Secretary Mary Knight made a motion to proceed with the Accela contract upon City Solicitor Guy Ayres’ approval.

“I have used this software that other jurisdictions have, and I think the public will really find it nice when you can click on an agenda item and it will take you right to that portion of the video, so you will be able to find topics very easily in the future,” Councilman Doug Cymek said in seconding the motion.

The council voted unanimously to approve. Upon Ayres’ approval of the contract, the goal is to have the software installed by the beginning of the New Year.

 

 

 

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