Glen Ellyn looks to improve interaction

Camera-shy Glen Ellyn residents might be in for some accommodations from officials who hope to improve interaction during village board workshop meetings.

At a workshop Monday, trustees considered a plan that would move drop-down microphones from a room in the civic center to the main board room.

The move would allow residents to comment without appearing on camera during the village's recorded sessions, perhaps sparking a more engaged audience.

The discussion began earlier this year when some trustees wondered if a change in the room's configuration might improve their ability to read each other's body language. The current layout is typical of a board room, with trustees seated on a raised dais in front of the room facing the audience.

But some trustees said they wanted to investigate whether a change to the layout, including a move down to floor level, would improve interaction among the trustees and residents.

However, that talk stopped once the village's multimedia specialist John Norton estimated the change would require $10,000 for a new wireless microphone system. Instead, the microphones will be transferred from a nearby room.

As the board debated the change, Trustee Carl Henninger said a complete overhaul might be more trouble than it is worth.

“I am concerned we go down this path and it's not all it's cracked up to be, he said. “I am afraid we would go to all of this trouble and the dynamic would not change whatsoever. I do feel we suffer from the lack of reading body language and the formality of being up here, but I am not sure it's $10,000 worth of suffering.

Under the current layout, anyone looking to speak with the board, must approach a microphone situated on either side of the room, in view of television cameras. But this would negate that requirement as residents would be allowed to ask questions from their seats.