The Town Council has approved a $119,000 cooperative purchase agreement with Level 3 Audio Visual for an upgrade of audio visual equipment used in council chambers at Town Hall.

Information Technology Administrator Mike Ciccarone outlined the proposal in a report to the Town Council at its regular session on April 7.

“There have been numerous equipment failures to date,” Ciccarone said. “If the equipment is not replaced soon, we run the risk of another equipment failure which could make the room unusable for public meetings.”

The existing audio visual equipment in the council chambers was installed during the construction of Town Hall in 2005. The associated video production system was purchased in 2008.

“At that time, the audio/video system was state of the art with three remotely controlled cameras. However, over the last five years, there have been numerous component failures including audio mixer, control system, video production system, and web streaming encoder,” Ciccarone said.

He also said that recently staff has received multiple complaints regarding poor sound quality and the inability to hear council members and presentations during meetings. Council members reported receiving similar comments from the public.

“Due to equipment failures, it is now impossible to adjust microphone levels on the fly during meetings. There are also deficiencies with the hearing assist system,” Ciccarone said.

Over the years, staff has made minor repairs to the equipment as needed. According to Ciccarone, it has become increasingly difficult to find (used) replacement hardware. He said he recently had to make a purchase of a component for the parts to make a repair.

The proposal before the council is to replace all audio/video and video production equipment to enhance the quality of public meetings with improved presentations and sound reinforcement, as well as quicker turnaround to post meetings online for the public.

Councilman Alan Magazine asked about warranty on the equipment. Ciccarone said installation and all components would have a one-year warranty. He added that with most electronic equipment an extended warranty can be purchased, however, he was not recommending that.

Councilman Dennis Brown asked Ciccarone if he was satisfied the package to be purchased would suit the needs of the town for an upgrade.

Ciccarone said he believes it will take care of the needs for years to come.

Councilman David Spelich said he originally balked at the price tag, but has since been convinced of the necessity.

Ciccarone said there is an eight-week lead time to have the equipment shipped. It then needs to be tested and installed, probably in June.