Ravenna – Beginning on Monday, March 1, Ravenna City Council moved all meetings to “Cisco Meeting” using the permanently installed camera system in Council Chambers. Meetings can continue to be viewed by the public via the Ravenna City Council YouTube channel.
“When the pandemic hit, we moved all meetings to Zoom and have stayed with that software for the past year,” President of Council Andrew Kluge said. “Looking towards the future, we began working together to find a more permanent solution so that even when members and residents are able to meet in person, those who cannot attend meetings are able to play an active role virtually. In the age of technology, our goal is to make our meetings easily accessible so that residents can stay up to date with happenings within the City of Ravenna”.
Christina West, Chairperson of Information Systems Committee states “Through my work at the Portage County Board of Developmental Disabilities I have learned the importance of making the community more accessible to everyone. Accessibility can remove many barriers and allows more residents to contribute if they feel empowered to do so; utilizing technology is an easy way to make this happen”.
One of the most important issues for all members of City Council is continuous communication with residents. Building upon the current audio system, we have added video and streaming capabilities that will allow residents to stay involved in local government amidst Covid-19 concerns and beyond.
City Council is confident that this step to increase transparency and accessibility will help to encourage more citizen involvement in the government process.
This project was put together in collaboration with members of Council, the Clerk of Council and Quality IP who helped with the permanent installation of wires and camera system.
