Like the spinning wheel on a computer screen signalling a machine trying to reach its intended destination, Port Moody council is continuing to circle a decision on electronic participation at council meetings.
Although some councillors balked at the prospect of spending up to $45,000 on a video conferencing system, they eventually voted to investigate the prospect further at a future committee of the whole meeting.
"I think we're going back to have the same conversation we had six months ago," said Coun. Diana Dilworth.
That conversation started in November 2015 after councillors Rob Vagramov and Rick Glumac used Skype to remotely attend separate council meetings. But a poor connection and the need to have a senior staff member sitting in the councillors' seats to assist in the speaking and voting processes led some to question whether electronic participation was effective or a distraction.
In February, council passed a motion removing electronic participation at meetings from the procedure bylaw until a more reliable system could be implemented.
A staff report presented Tuesday showed a professional-grade conferencing system would cost close to $45,000 — although the quality of the internet connection on the remote participant's end could still cause disruptions.
Questions about whether the technology could be used in other rooms in city hall (not really) and for other events and/or presentations (possibly) prompted council to vote against maintaining the existing consumer-level Skype service.
"Clearly, we have a lot more to do on this," said Coun. Meghan Lahti. "I'd like to look at both the options staff presented in terms of how effective they could be and look at where we can find the budget for something like this."
Coun. Rob Vagramov said Wednesday council doesn't need to spend $45,000 and that the existing system could be used with the caveat that, in the event of a poor connection, the remote participant could simply be cut off.
"I think it's very valuable to be bleeding edge," he added. "It's extremely important to embrace technology as it comes along."
Staff will be investigating further the opportunities for an upgraded Skype system costing either $35,000 or $45,000.
