HILLSDALE—Borough Council members agreed Oct. 12 to approve hybrid meetings — allowing Zoom callers to offer public comment at an in-person council meeting — starting in early 2022.
The new meeting format combines an in-person meeting, allowing residents to attend in-person at Borough Hall or via the Zoom online platform, and enables both in-person and online attendees to offer public comments and hear council responses in real-time.
Several council members stressed the new format increases public participation in local government by allowing residents to attend in-person or online, especially as local officials grapple with evolving issues including redevelopment and downtown revitalization.
Borough Administrator Chris Tietjen told Mayor John Ruocco and the council that it will cost $25,000 to $30,000, the funds coming from 2021 capital improvements, to add new electronic components to council chambers to make this happen.
Moreover, Tietjen said, it would take about three months lead time to convert to a hybrid meeting format.
Ruocco and council members could be in Borough Hall chambers, said Tietjen, and would be able to respond to online viewers who call in to meetings. In addition, all meetings will be livestreamed on Zoom and broadcast on the borough public access channel, as well as archived for later viewing on YouTube.
Officials noted that the council had not televised its meetings on FIOS for at least two years. However, Tietjen said under the new format, television viewers on its public access channel would be able to call a number on the screen and offer comments.
Tietjen said most nearby communities had mostly gone back to in-person meetings while the council decided to stay virtual due to the delta variant’s spread.
However, Westwood remains with a hybrid format for its meetings.
Members mostly agreed with going hybrid, Anthony DeRosa wondered if members could call in to a couple meetings annually. Attorney Mark Madaio said remote attendance was legally acceptable and should be included in board policy.
Janetta Trochimiuk strongly favored the move, noting that there were 28 Zoom viewers participating in the Oct. 12 meeting.