[Occupymendocino] Ann, Howard & Richard went to the FB City Council meeting

[Richard Karch]

Here's the letter we presented:
We each got up and spoke too. rk
Dear Mayor Turner and Ft Bragg City Council,
  
 We urge you to continue to work actively to seek applicants for the position of Public Access TV provider, preferably from our community on the Coast.  The loss of MCTV is deeply felt by all who want to hear about what is occurring in our public meetings such as the School Board, Hospital Board, Rec and Park District, and many other groups which are of concern to our community. 

We would prefer a non-profit group, as the for-profit company that currently records some City Council meetings is not willing to do public meetings for affordable prices. As a result the meetings simply are no longer being filmed at all!  The recent problems at the Senior Center are an example of how secretive meetings with hidden agendas can destroy the smooth running of our favorite local public institutions.  When the light is not shone on the workings of the Boards in charge, they sometimes start bypassing bylaws and rules of order and courtesy. This is especially true in the case of self-appointing Boards.  There must be some oversight of appointed Board Members  by taping the meetings and allowing community members to view and review meetings they are unable to attend. This also can keep an awareness of the activities planned, or the budgets or volunteer needs of our institutions. If the PEG TV provider you choose can also train students and volunteers to film meetings and edit and show the films. this can provide needed jobs and training for community members while getting them more involved in governmental processes.

The digitized archive that MCTV produced and left on their website is still a tremendous selling point for the North Coast  and needs to be sustained. Reaching out globally it encourages travel, commerce and education to our remote area.  The recent passing of Antonia Lamb was a good example. Her friends included individuals from all parts of the world who could look and hear her words in the "Senior Perspectives" interview.  A Public-Access television facility has become an important asset to our communities and county over the years. The level of TV production we had with MCTV does not exist in most other rural communities. 
The tape archive now stored at the Footlighters building needs to be secured.  Historical tapes from the 1980's until the present are sitting in limbo waiting for a concerned entity to save them.  Our one historical museum, the Kelly House in Mendocino,  can not handle the care and development of these historical tapes. We need another Public Access TV production facility that can continue to digitize offer access to the many hours of treasured historical programming!

 On tonight's agenda the Board has noted they have tentatively chosen an internet broadcast system offered by a company called Granicus. While this might be good for showing the City Council meetings and distributing City business on the net, it will not provide for the Public Access TV we all want and need to cover other important events.  We understand it costs a minimum of $300 a month to belong to this internet broadcasting facility.  We think this money might be better used to help support our own TV production facility. If the Granicus storage site is the only solution for making up for the loss of MCTV it would probably end our hopes of having our own Public Access TV facility again.

We were happy to hear in your September 5 City Notes report that you are planning to issue a Request for Proposals for PEG services for the coastal community. We want these to be started as soon as possible and request an update on the progress of finding applicants. 

Again, we need a facility to document North Coast activities including: meetings of other boards, school programs, sports, arts, history, education, programs like "Senior Perspectives". A production facility that provides job training opportunities for local citizens and could provide lower cost videography services. 
As a key entity in local government, concerned about the needs of the entire Fort Bragg coastal community, we feel it is incumbent on the City of Fort Bragg to work diligently toward a replacement for the loss of MCTV.   

 The website petition initiated  by Occupy Mendocino, presented to the FB City Council last month, had 450+ citizens asking to restore our Community Access Television Facility on the North Coast.  People want us to have our own facility again! 

We encourage the board to work and search for a person or group to restore our Public Access TV provider/ Community Access Television facility!


     Thank You for your consideration of this important matter.
      Ann Rennacker, Richard Karch and Howard Ennes
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