HomeMy Public PortalAboutCable Television Advisory -- 2011-10-04 Minutes Draft Copy—Not Yet Reviewed or Approved
Minutes of the meeting of the Brewster Cable TV Advisory Committee
Tuesday, Oct.4, 2011 at 7:00 pm in Meeting Room A, Brewster Town Hall.
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm by Norm Adams, Chair.
Members present: Norm Adams,Walter Powers,Janet Husband.
There was no audience present.
Norm Adams distributed copies of the draft minutes of the meeting of Tuesday, August 9, 2011
as well as copies of the approved and subsequently filed minutes of the meeting of Tuesday,
April 6, 2011. Janet Husband moved and Walter Powers seconded that the Minutes of the
August 9, 2011 be accepted. All members present voted Yea. The Minutes of the August 9,
2011 meeting of the Brewster Cable TV Advisory Committee were accepted.
Matters discussed (as listed in the posted agenda):
Update on LCCAT and the Community Access TV Channel (17).
Norm Adams reported that there will be no LCCAT Open House as previously planned.
The Annual Meeting, however, has been scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011 at the Nauset
Regional High School studio at 7:00 pm. The public is invited.
The "nervous background crawl" noticed by viewers on Channel 17 is alleged to be
caused by hardware problems. Overall progress on getting the channel up and operating, as
reported by Norm Adams, has been "less than satisfactory."
Utility of small factual videos on town aspects.
The Committee continues to feel that short videos on matters of general interest to
Brewster residents and visitors should be produced. James Paul Ludwig is capable of making
these videos, depending on how much time he has available for such work. Examples of topics
are: interviews with newly elected or appointed officials, informative summaries about services
available to the public, i.e., recreational programs, Council on Aging activities,flu shots, etc.
There followed a discussion of the possible use of volunteers to help make this sort of
video for the government channel. Will citizen volunteers be allowed to produce videos for the
government channel (Channel 18), or will they be limited to working for the public access
channel (Channel 17).
New Business
There continues to be concern over the operating hours of Channel 17. Viewers and
potential producers are beginning to express their dissatisfaction with the availability of the
studio's new director. They report having been unable to contact him or to get a schedule of
his regular working hours. The studio is being used by students, but the studio has not been
accessible to the public, not has any training program been announced.
Schedule of future meetings.
We had hoped that James Paul Ludwig, now working for the town of Brewster 25-35
hours per week, would be able to attend. But he was busy taping another public meeting. We
will try to schedule future meetings at a day and time when Mr. Ludwig will be able to attend.
Walter Powers moved and Janet Husband seconded that the meeting adjourn. All members
present voted Yea. The meeting was adjourned at 8:14 pm.
Submitted by
Janet Husband, Clerk, Brewster Cable TV Advisory Committee.
Documents used (and attached) are:
1) "Brewster Government Channel Projects" prepared by James Paul Ludwig.
2) Memo from Charles Sumner to James Paul Ludwig, 9/28/2011.
Brewster Government Channel Projects
• Meet with all department heads to inform them of the use of the channel for PSAs and the use of the
bulletin board.There could be a lot more information presented on the bulletin board than there is
currently.The BPD and BFD could be trained about access to the system in case of emergency
• Create an inventory of all the production equipment at town hall and also create an inventory of all sound
equipment at the Brewster schools or other production related gear at town locations
• Create a promotional video for the town for airing on the G channel and the website.Content could
include the town's history, places of interest,things to do, prominent citizens,etc.
• Mark and label all town-owned field equipment
• Research and recommend additional equipment to be purchased by the town with cable franchise funds
(field equipment for production, additional equipment cases,etc.)
• Identify other programs of interest:committee meetings,town-wide events,etc.,to be produced for
airing on the G channel(The library would like to do a Brewster Oral History Project in conjunction with
the Historical Society)
• Create and produce informational programs with content from various town departments. Example: a five
to eight minute piece about programs offered by the rec department or a program about the BPD's
Reassurance Program
• Improve the overall look of the channel's presentation,opening and closing graphics for meetings,
additional government programming available on servers, local picture backgrounds,etc.
• Prepare for Fall Town Meeting and use of the Anycast system and robotic cameras
• Assess other town buildings as far as audio/video capabilities(for instance the library needs the PA
system to be altered so as to be able to get a direct feed from the PA)
• Assess the full capabilities of all software and hardware for video production recently purchased by the
town(I need to really spend some time going over manuals,on line resources, etc.,to date I've mostly
put in minimal hours due to legal restrictions on the number of hours I'm allowed to work)
Brewster Government Channel Projects work scope 9 28 11.txt 10/4/11 5:41 PM
To: James Paul Ludwig, "BGTV Executive Director"
From: Charles L. Sumner, Town Administrator
Subject: Contract Addendum for Brewster Government Channel Projects
Date: September 28, 2011
The purpose of this letter to formalize the discussions that we have had recently relative to services
that wish to undertake within your contract for Brewster's government channel.
• Meet with all department heads to inform them of the use of the channel for PSAs and the
use of the bulletin board.There could be a lot more information presented on the bulletin board than
there is currently. The Police Department and Fire Department could be trained about access to the
system in case of emergency
• Create an inventory of all the production equipment at town hall and also create an
inventory of all sound equipment at the Brewster schools or other production related gear at town
locations
• Create a promotional video for the town for airing on the Government channel and the
website. Content could include the town's history, places of interest, things to do, prominent citizens,
etc.
• Mark and label all town-owned field equipment
• Research and recommend additional equipment to be purchased by the town with cable
franchise funds (field equipment for production, additional equipment cases, etc.)
• Identify other programs of interest: committee meetings, town-wide events, etc., to be
produced for airing on the Government channel (for example, the library would like to do a Brewster
Oral History Project in conjunction with the Historical Society)
• Create and produce informational programs with content from various town departments.
Example: a five to eight minute piece about programs offered by the Recreation Department or a
program about the Police Department's Reassurance Program
• Improve the overall look of the channel's presentation, opening and closing graphics for
meetings, additional government programming available on servers, local picture backgrounds, etc.
• Prepare for Fall Town Meeting and use of the Anycast system and robotic cameras
• Assess other town buildings as far as audio/video capabilities (for instance the library needs
the PA system to be altered so as to be able to get a direct feed from the PA)
• Assess the full capabilities of all software and hardware for video production recently
purchased by the town
• Test, assess, and maintain systems for most proficient audio/video performance
• Oversee installations of the video return lines
• Televise the meetings of the Board of Selectmen, Finance Committee, Planning Board,
Elementary School Committee, Board of Health, Conservation Commission, Board of Appeals, Golf
Commission and other special events as authorized by the Town Administrator
Based upon the discussions concerning the scope of this work, it is estimated that these
activities will result in a work schedule of 25 to 35 hours per week.
CC: Ed Lewis, Selectmen
Lisa Souve, Finance Director
Jill Douglass, Assistant Town Administrator
Norm Adams, Cable TV Committee
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