2025-025 Remote Meeting Participation for Planning and Zoning Commission January 24,2025 Report No. 2025-025
INFORMAL STAFF REPORT
TO MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
Provide a response to a Two-Minute Pitch request for remote commissioner participation at
Planning and Zoning Commission meetings.
BACKGROUND:
Denton Television(DTV), a division of the Marketing and Communications Department, has five
full-time staff members responsible for development,production, and distribution of multi-media
programming to meet the goals and objectives of the City's strategic and communications plans.
DTV oversees all televised board and commission meetings, either through in-house staff or a
third-party contractor. In addition to meeting production, DTV manages a YouTube channel and
provides video content for the City's social media platforms.
The City of Denton televises 11 board and commission meetings, including the City Council. Four
are produced by DTV staff and seven are produced by the City's third-party contractor, Swagit.
Remote meeting participation is not available through Swagit. Currently, remote meeting
participation is limited to City Council meetings exclusively.
DISCUSSION:
To maintain consistency and avoid setting a broader precedent, the City has limited remote
participation to City Council meetings. Although Zoom is a standard communication tool,
integrating it with the City's existing production infrastructure—which includes 12 live
microphones and a multi-camera setup—presents technical challenges. Key production elements,
such as audio quality, camera angles, and in-room screen visuals, are critical and require careful
coordination.
During meetings, DTV staff monitor the live signal across the City's website and three cable
providers to ensure reliability. The most intricate challenge of incorporating remote participation
is maintaining high-quality audio. The City utilizes an Audio over Ethernet (AoE) routing matrix
to manage live microphones in the Council Work Session Room and Council Chamber. While
AoE provides high-quality audio transmission over a single Ethernet cable, integrating it with
Zoom requires significant technical effort to ensure balanced sound levels in the meeting room
and on the broadcast.
Adding remote participation necessitates a thorough pre-meeting process, including rebooting and
testing microphones, audio processors, and digital interfaces. This additional complexity will
increase preparation time and demand greater staff effort to ensure seamless communication.
January 24,2025 Report No. 2025-025
DTV staff are committed to producing high-quality public meetings. While the operating budget
may experience a slight increase, the significant impact will be on staff capacity and production
timelines. With the hiring of a Chief Communications Officer, the DTV team has recalibrated
community expectations for increased video content. If remote integration is implemented here, it
will inevitably affect other video production projects and social media content. Though the extent
of this impact is difficult to quantify, it remains a key consideration.
The Texas Open Meetings Act allows for remote participation, enabling members to engage in
discussions and vote on agenda items. However, it is important to note that members
participating remotely do not count toward the quorum required to convene a meeting. For
Planning and Zoning Commission meetings, a quorum of four is required to attend in person, and
with only five members currently serving on the Commission, only one member can participate
remotely at any given time.
To ensure fairness and balance, the City must carefully manage remote participation. While all
commissioners may request remote participation,it is essential to exercise this privilege equitably.
CONCLUSION:
Providing remote participation for Planning and Zoning Commissioners may be possible with
existing staff but will shift DTV's focus away from other video production projects. Balancing
these competing priorities requires careful consideration of the broader impact on the City's
mission and goals. To ensure a sustainable approach, staff recommends that, if the Council
chooses to pursue this option, a formal policy be developed to address the associated challenges
and provide clear guidelines moving forward.
NEXT STEPS:
If this proceeds to the Agenda Committee and direction is provided on a path forward, staff will
prepare a follow up work session.
STAFF CONTACT:
Billy Matthews
DTV Manager
Billy.Matthews@cityofdenton.com
(940) 249-7272
REQUESTOR:
Council Member Meltzer
STAFF TIME TO COMPLETE REPORT:
5 hours
January 24,2025 Report No. 2025-025
PARTICIPATING DEPARTMENTS:
Marketing and Communications