After more than two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawkesbury Town Council is going back to in-person meetings. However, council, staff, and the public will still have the option of participating in and following meetings online.
On March 28, council approved a recommendation to return to in-person meetings, but with a hybrid online participation option, effective April 25. The format will not only apply for regular council meetings, but also for zoning and planning public meetings.
During the March 22 Committee of the Whole meeting, Communications Coordinator Yvan Ruel explained two cameras, microphones, and a laptop computer with required software had been installed in the council chamber at the town hall to facilitate hybrid meetings. The Clerk and Communications Coordinator will each have responsibilities for the operation of equipment and software during meetings to ensure effective communication between participants.
All regular council meetings will continue to be livestreamed and the video will remain available afterwards on the town’s YouTube channel.
Special or emergency council meetings, and Committee of the Whole meetings will continue to be conducted online only. That suggestion had been made by Councillor Yves Paquette at the March 22 Committee of the Whole meeting. Those meetings will continue to be open to the public, as they are livestreamed, and the video will also be accessible after on the municipal YouTube channel.
Hawkesbury council’s next regular meeting is at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 25 at the Town Hall, located at 600 Higginson Street, or online at https://www.youtube.com/c/HawkesburyON .
