Jeffersonville installing new recording system for meetings

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November 23, 2012

Jeffersonville installing new recording system for meetings

By BRADEN LAMMERS braden.lammers@newsandtribune.com The News and Tribune Fri Nov 23, 2012, 07:01 PM EST

JEFFERSONVILLE — Jeffersonville residents will soon have a new way to attend public meetings without ever having to leave their homes.

City Clerk Vicki Conlin launched part of the software at this week’s Jeffersonville City Council meeting and hopes to have the program fully operational by the council’s next meeting Dec. 3.

The new digital audio and video recording system was approved by the council at an October meeting, cost $5,996 and was paid for out of the clerk’s budget.

Conlin explained the DCR2 digital recording system and software will allow the clerk’s office to record audio and video of all public meetings.

Erica Burress, chief deputy clerk, explained that the new recording system allows the recordings to be bookmarked, which will eventually allow the office to link the subject matter to the corresponding agenda item and will also allow for simultaneous playback if there is a question about what was said during a meeting while they are still recording.

“Eventually, the goal will be to post the agenda online with a link to take the user directly to that portion of the meeting,” she said.

Conlin said that the video links will likely be placed on a YouTube channel, which has not been launched yet, as well as a Facebook page and Twitter account the clerk’s office is working on for the council. She added that the recordings also will likely be posted on the city’s website.

“That is also our goal, to somehow get it linked to the city website,” Conlin said.

She added that eventually that recordings will be made of all public meetings, Parks Authority board meetings, Board of Public Works meetings, as well as all council workshops and public meetings.

However, Conlin said there will not be video for meetings held outside the city council chambers until the office is able to secure a webcam for the laptop it is using for the recordings.