Riley County to replace meeting software, add live-streaming and searchable archives with CivicPlus

The Riley County Commission on Dec. 2 approved moving from its current Minitrak/Granicus meeting platform to the CivicPlus CivicClerk platform, authorizing staff to begin implementation with a first-year cost of $20,375 and additional hardware upgrades.

County IT/GIS staff presented the proposal to commissioners, saying the vendor will convert existing minutes, provide live-streaming services and make meeting video and text searchable on the county website. "This product has all the functionality we currently have and then some," the IT/GIS director told the commission during the presentation.

The commission heard that implementation would include camera and audio equipment changes: keeping the existing back-of-chamber camera, adding a presenter camera, and revising microphones. The IT/GIS director said the service would go live in March, with the first-year implementation and conversion fees accounting for the higher cost; annual licensing afterward was described as dropping to below $18,000.

Commissioners also discussed accessibility and closed-captioning options. Staff said CivicPlus offers captioning services that typically require a live transcriber, which carries added cost; they noted that posting meetings to YouTube produces automated captions after broadcasts, and that county staff will evaluate which approach best meets the county's obligations.

County legal counsel told the board the contract terms had been reviewed and recommended approval subject to the county's standard contractual provisions. The commission approved the purchase motion with that condition; the motion language directed staff to proceed subject to signature of the county's contractual provisions attachment.

Commissioners and staff said searchable, archived minutes and integrated video would make it easier for the public to find materials and reduce the need to read through full meeting minutes to locate topics. Staff also planned hardware work to allow two video feeds (chamber and presenter) and better screen layouts for remote viewers.

The vote to proceed was taken after discussion; the motion specified conversion of historical minutes by the vendor and inclusion of live streaming in the contracted package. No detailed vote tally of individual votes was recorded in the public transcript beyond the board's verbal "Aye" responses.

The county will schedule initial implementation and training with CivicPlus and use budgeted renewal funds that otherwise would have gone to the prior vendor.