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Town officials may add second camera to improve meeting coverage

Since upgrading audiovisual equipment in the Town Hall meeting room several months ago, town officials are now considering installing a second camera to improve video coverage of presentations given during meetings.

“You just don’t get a clear view,” Lloyd Reisenberg of the town’s IT department explained during a work session Tuesday. “It doesn’t do justice to individuals trying to watch Channel 22 or viewing it online.”

The second camera could be installed for $5,100. Once installed, it would be as simple as switching a button on the wall from Camera 1 to Camera 2 and would be integrated with the recently-installed video system. Mr. Reisenberg said is otherwise working smoothly.

Currently, only videos of Town Board work sessions appear on the Southold website. Councilman Jim Dinizio said other boards, such as the Planning, Zoning and Trustees should be using the new technology.

“I thought that was the whole thing, to get more information out to the public,” he said. “We could do that with one camera…we’re not utilizing the system to its fullest extent now.”

Supervisor Scott Russell said it’s a fairly new system and said that the board can’t mandate that elected boards, such as the Trustees, participate.

“It’s not like it’s been languishing for years and people refuse to use it,” he said. “If they decide they don’t want to use it, then hold them accountable at the ballot box.”

Mr. Reisenberg said he could readily provide training to anyone willing to learn how to operate the system, and his department then uploads the file to Channel 22 or the town website.

“We’re trying to keep it simple so anyone can use it with a little bit of training,” he said.

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