Highlands East Council is upgrading some audio and visual equipment.
During the regular council meeting today, Robin Rogers, the Municipal Clerk, posed the idea of getting some new gear to be used during council meetings.
Rogers pointed out that the current set up is problematic. An issue that they face every meeting is that there are not enough microphones, pointing to the fact that right now they have one mic that is pointed towards the middle of the table so the councillors on either side of it do not get heard.
Another issue they face is the fact that the current soundboard is outdated and has been overused to the point that it has literally been taped together.
If they go forward with purchasing new gear, Rogers says they would get wireless mics for all of the councillors, CAO and the Clerk. As well they would get a microphone for the podium. For accessibility, they would also purchase “an ear-suspension earphone”. Rogers says they also quoted out getting a new screen for better visibility of the agenda and presentations.
According to Rogers, the cost of all that stuff was quoted at $12,804 including HST. To deal with that cost, the council voted to pull the total from the municipal reserves.