Dupage Policy Journal

At the Dec. 19 meeting of the Village of Clarendon Hill Strategic Planning Board, the board discussed upgrading its sound and camera systems for remote participation in the board meetings. It currently has a “piecemeal” system that is not the most functional. The board had put out a bid and got bids from two companies. IT recommended going with the lower bid from Sound Inc. for $33,783 for all the equipment, installation, and a five-year agreement for maintenance.

“Kind of, going forward with the existing system doesn't work,” Assistant Village Manager Zach Creer told the board. “The cost is expensive and this was at the lower end of their kind of specs. A lot of these rooms go up to 100,000 or more, especially for ones that incorporate outside participation. So the reason I was comfortable with recommending Sound Inc, is they do the DuPage County boardroom, for example, they've done Woodridge and a few of the other towns around here. So (they have) a lot of experience doing these types of systems. So I'm comfortable with that."

The new equipment will have a camera in the back center of the room providing a clear image of the board, new speakers in the back so that the audience can clearly hear all speakers, microphones around the room to capture all audio, and also a mixer that would feed enhanced sound to online watchers for best viewing.

The board was told that while the installation and set-up time for this project would only be a few days, there could be a few months delay for some equipment as supply chain issues are still at hand. Most of the equipment will last at least five years, with some of the biggest and most expensive equipment lasting up to 20 years. 

The board opted to go forward with the project.

Council uploaded a livestream of its public meeting to the village’s website.

Council also discussed increased building permit fees in 2023.

The council will meet again at 6 p.m. on Jan. 17 at 1 North Prospect Ave.