First let me start off by saying that the Westfield Gas & Electric (WG&E) is a great department and is doing a fantastic job. The gas and electric rates are great and now with Whip City Fiber coming, our potential as a City is unlimited.
Thursday, October 18, 2018 – City Council Meeting
Motion is to request the Westfield Gas & Electric Municipal Light Board to start broadcasting their monthly meetings Westfield’s community access channel and archive with Vimeo (or similar platform) playback. The Municipal Light Board (MLB) meetings are held at 7:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month and at other times as needed.
The reason for the request to the Municipal Light Board (MLB) from the whole city council is because the MLB is a board elected by the voters, no different than the Mayor, City Council, and School Committee. The Planning Board is also on television and they are an appointed board. The Council has been very aggressive, taping all of our regular meetings and more and more of our subcommittee meetings and posting them online through our Vimeo. We should make it as easy as possible for the public to understand and know what is happening across the city, including the WG&E. Residents elect the MLB, which governs the WG&E, so the more we know, the better informed we are as rate payers.
The WG&E is on the cutting edge with technology, and with equipment becoming less expensive to purchase and easier to run, there is no excuse to not be on television. There are several reasons to broadcast the MLB meetings, including transparency and accountability. The board meetings should be televised because they are public meetings, and the public has a right to view them. Televising meetings lets the public follow the work of their elected MLB and hold the utility and the board accountable for actions taken, just like the City Council, Planning Board and School Committee.
The broadcasts provide a more in-depth record than traditional minutes, including discussions, board actions, and presentations. When meetings are rebroadcast or streamed online, it allows people who were unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts to view the meetings at their convenience. Local media like the Westfield News and the Republican would be able to cover the meetings even when they cannot attend.
This request is not new. I’ve made it several times, dating back more than five years. More and more, people are demanding that public meetings be available to watch on-demand so that people can watch when they find the time to do so. This request is just a reflection of that reality.
Brent B. Bean II
Westfield City Councilor
