Commissioners to host first in-person meeting in more than a year Thursday morning

Commissioners to host first in-person meeting in more than a year Thursday morning
Board to launch hybrid sessions on July 8, allowing online viewing thru Facebook, Zoom

[Tiffin, OH – July 1, 2021] – On Thursday, July 8, the Seneca County Board of Commissioners is to hold its first in-person board session since March 26, 2020.
Although the 10 a.m. meeting is to be hosted at the commissioners’ office, 111 Madison St., people may view the live session via Zoom or on Facebook.
Seneca County Public Relations Director Jimmy Flint said the hybrid approach is being used to be as transparent and accessible as possible while giving all people the opportunity to participate and view the meetings.
He urged potential viewers to watch the Facebook feed if they want to see a professional broadcast, but do not wish to speak during the meeting. He said those who do want to speak during the session should join with the Zoom link.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SenecaCountyCommissioners/live_videos/
Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/92595230790?pwd=c0d1cVJ0MVY4RXUwSERweXo4SnE2QT09
Participants may also join the Zoom meeting by dialing (312) 626-6799 and using the following information:
Meeting ID: 925 9523 0790
Passcode: 453802

On the Facebook broadcast, viewers will see multiple camera angles, graphics and an overall higher quality product. On Zoom, there will just be one camera angle, but people will have the ability to participate in the session.
Viewers may switch between the two ways to view at any time, and the Facebook broadcast will include a link to the Zoom session during the public comment portion of the meeting.
When state law changed last year to allow online meetings due to the COVID-19 outbreak, county officials were unsure how it would affect participation in county government.
“We actually saw a much higher level of participation and more viewers. Some meetings had nearly 100 folks logged in,” said Board President Mike Kerschner.
On Facebook and YouTube, commissioners’ meetings were viewed more than 19,000 times across 74 meetings since late March 2020.
Although statistics on Zoom cannot be tracked, most meetings had between 30 and 70 participants.
Kerschner said he and the board feel it is very important to continue to offer the digital option, even as the commissioners begin to host in-person sessions again.
“One of the few bright spots of the pandemic was learning that we can reach more people and make county government more accessible to our citizens by using technology,” he said. “This is a great way to be as transparent as possible and to improve our communication with our residents.”