Buffalo Grove mayoral candidates weigh in on televising committee meetings

Buffalo Grove residents who watch village board meetings on television may feel they are learning about their local government.

But what they get is a boiled-down product that is the result of much fuller discussion and deliberation at another meeting of the full board - the committee of the whole proceedings.

Whereas the village board meetings feature a relatively terse presentation of the agenda items - often without any discussion - the committee of the whole meetings provide a forum for a comparatively robust discussion of such important issues as the village's upcoming infrastructure needs.

These meetings, however, are not televised and are inaccessible to those who can't, for one reason or another, make it to village hall.

Both candidates for Buffalo Grove village president said they are in favor of televising the meetings - and one of them even wants to bring those meetings to satellite locations.

Village President Beverly Sussman, who is running for a second term, said 10 committee of the whole meetings are scheduled for 2019. "Our village is very transparent," she said. "Televising COW meetings would make it even more transparent."

Although no official votes are taken, the board can give direction to the staff, and informal polling often takes place.

Sussman's challenger, former Trustee Michael Terson, also favors bringing the committee of the whole meetings to the community by holding them in satellite locations, something Sussman said she does not support.

Terson said there is a lack of transparency in not televising the part of the process that is intended to be the discussion. Acknowledging that municipal government is not usually at the top of mind for residents, and that there may even be a disconnect between members of the community and their local elected officials, he said, "I think that it's our obligation to try and bridge that gap, to engage the community as much as we can, to make being part of the conversation and part of the process and just observing it even as easy as possible."

Terson said he would like to see the village board conduct committee of the whole meetings in parks, restaurants and other gathering places.

Sussman, however, said all meetings should be held at village hall. She said satellite locations would make it more difficult to televise the meetings.

As for why the village doesn't televise the meetings already, Sussman said one reason is to keep them informal.