Council President Shirley Surgeon told the public at the start of the meeting that the city is testing a translation service for public comment that she said can translate as many as 80 languages and that the council will phase out Zoom for its hybrid meetings.

"Right now, we're still hiring a couple of the kinks out of it... it can translate up to 80 different languages," Surgeon said, and she invited bilingual community members to volunteer to help test the service in coming weeks.

Council members and staff clarified how remote viewers will access translations. A staff member told the council that, for now, the live HBA TV broadcast will not display translations "yet," and that mobile users will need to download a supported app and choose their preferred language on their device to receive the translation. The council and staff said they will prepare documentation and outreach explaining how to use the service.

When asked by Councilman T.J. Clark whether the Zoom platform will be retired, Surgeon replied it is "safe to say that," and said the council will conduct education and outreach as it transitions to the new platform.

No formal policy or vote was taken at the meeting; staff said the system remains in testing and that additional public education will be required before translation is widely available to viewers at home.