Cambridge Council's Policy Order on Technology

Link to order
http://www2.cambridgema.gov/cityclerk/PolicyOrder.cfm?item_id=34138

Cambridge City Council policy order on public meetings and technology may merit reconsideration. The City Manager purchased new wireless microphones for the Planning Board Meetings at the Broadway Annex building.
The members of the Planning Board sometimes don't use them. In some cases they do not turn them on. In other cases they speak so low that even with the microphones you still cannot hear them. The PB volunteers are not trained properly in using the expensive equipment, SONY with each mic costing over $90 plus the transmitting amplifier.

Will having more expensive technology available be any different? When I used to video tape the meetings, allowed under the open meetings law, some of the PB members complained worried that what they said would be recorded. Some of the board and commission members do not want their actions available to be seen by too many people. One of them may understand what they are doing.

The Zoning Board hearings have no loud speakers even though all it takes is to ask the city electric department to set them up for the meetings. Citizens who attend them cannot hear what is said at the table. The discussion is recorded on audio tape for which it is very expensive to get a transcript.

The City has about 50 computers at the seven libraries for public use, and more at the Senior Center. None of them are Apple computers. I asked the previous chief reference librarian to get one Apple computer. He explained that maintenance of Apple computers is expensive. One other librarian explained that the PC is the city standard. There are a citizens who use Apple equipment and cannot use the public equipment to access some of their data.

When the City had an agreement with Cablevision one element was to make some of the city buildings where public meetings were held wired for broadcasting on the City cable station Channel 8. But that was never done. When the city transferred the license to Comcast that provision was ignored and maybe removed. If all city meetings were broadcast it would make the city's proceedings more accessible. But that may have to wait until there is a new more open minded city manager.