Elgin council split on videotaping all meetings

The Elgin City Council unanimously agreed this week to ensure its next special meeting is videotaped, and while some council members say this should become routine, others believe that's not necessary.

Councilwoman Tish Powell pushed the motion forward to videotape the Oct. 24 special meeting, which will kick off the 2016 budget planning. Initially a skeptic of videotaping special meetings, Powell said feedback from residents prompted her to decide that's necessary.

"I heard from a lot of people that they really, really appreciate the opportunity to see our meetings (on video)," she said. "It doesn't cost us money to move the meeting to a place already set up to accommodate that."

The council agreed to move the meeting from Hawthorne Hill Nature Center to either city hall or the Centre of Elgin, which are equipped for videotaping; meetings also can be streamed live online and on local TV from city hall.

Some council members said only special meetings focusing on fall budget planning should be videotaped.

"For the budget process, I think the community has a right to see what the discussion is and to go through the whole process with us," Mayor David Kaptain said. "For other (special meetings), not having cameras allows more open dialogue between council members and staff in a more relaxed atmosphere. People act different and speak differently in front of the cameras."

Special meetings, always open to the public, are viewed as "retreats" or informal working sessions during which staff members provide quarterly budget updates, discuss upcoming initiatives, and solicit feedback from the council.

The council holds these meetings every three months or so, most often at Hawthorne, which lacks specialized equipment for high-quality video needed for the city's website, according to City Manager Sean Stegall. All formal action takes place at regular meetings, which are videotaped.

Data obtained from the city shows that, in the past year, between 58 and 173 people viewed meetings via online live stream, while archived meetings were viewed between 29 and 406 times. TV data is not available, Director of Communications Kristine Rogowski said.

Powell said she intends to talk to other council members about videotaping all special meetings. Councilmembers John Prigge and Rose Martinez agreed that's necessary.

It's important to preserve a full record of all meetings, Martinez said. "When someone asks, 'Did that person really say that?' We can say, 'Yes, you can hear it for yourself.' "

It's all about transparency, said Prigge, who first brought up the videotaping topic last year. "It is really an affront to every citizen in the city to not be able to watch on TV or the Internet the rollout of the Hemmens task force report," Prigge said, referring a discussion at the July 18 special meeting.

There are many examples of suburban governmental bodies that broadcast live meetings and archive videos online - including Kane and Lake counties, Arlington Heights, Naperville, Geneva, Des Plaines, Elk Grove Village, Grayslake Elementary District 46, Warren Township High School District 121 and more - but a Daily Herald informal survey yielded no examples of special meetings being videotaped.

Council members John Steffen and Carol Rauschenberger agreed with Kaptain, saying video cameras are needed only for special meetings on budget planning.

"I'm still on the side of spending some time (meeting) off camera, which does, I believe, change people's behavior in some ways," Rauschenberger said.

Not having video cameras allows for more open discussions, which is the point of retreats, Steffen said, adding that meeting minutes are also available to the public.

Councilman Toby Shaw said special meetings that focus on "critical" topics should be videotaped, but meetings about less important topics don't need to be - a criteria he acknowledged might be difficult to determine.

Councilman Rich Dunne said he's OK with videotaping all meetings, but it's also good to change locations sometimes, even if that means not videotaping. "I think there is the value of bringing the citizens to different locations in the city," he said. "We have some facilities that people are not aware of."

Residents are welcome to record all meetings themselves, Councilman Terry Gavin said. "I really don't think it's a big deal either way. I think it's blown out of proportion - like many things we go over."