Lowndes County residents can soon watch livestreams of board of supervisors’ meetings online amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Supervisors unanimously approved Monday the purchase of new cameras and computer equipment to livestream public meetings on the county’s website, Facebook page and YouTube channel.
The cost totals roughly $8,800, said County Administrator Ralph Billingsley, and will come from this year’s operating budget. The decision to livestream the meetings came after the governor issued a statewide “shelter in place” order in the face of the coronavirus pandemic last Wednesday, prohibiting public gatherings of 10 or more people.
The county already records meetings on a DVD system, said county Information Technology Director Al Quinn. However, he said, the county does not have the equipment to convert the DVD files to videos accessible online, and the current cameras need to be replaced.
“The cameras are pretty bad regardless,” Quinn said. “The video quality is … pretty bad.”
District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith said many Mississippi cities and counties are already livestreaming their meetings to allow more public access during the pandemic. Faced with a boosting demand for livestream equipment on the market, he said, the cost would likely rise the longer Lowndes County waited.
“At some point, we are probably going to have to (livestream the meetings) anyway,” he said. “It’s probably going to cost more down the road if we wait.”
Billingsley said it may be weeks before the equipment is delivered and installed.
Yue Stella Yu was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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