[Massplanners] [EXTERNAL] Virtual Executive Session

[Michael McCarthy]

Hi Colleen,

We have always run our Zoom PB meetings as meetings and have never run into much of an issue with people speaking outside of the public comment period. It does require staff to be quick on the mute button every once in a while, but we start each meeting with a disclaimer that we will mute people if they are unknowingly unmuted or at the chair’s request. I find it less chaotic than in-person meetings! Our PB rarely uses executive sessions but I imagine the breakout rooms feature in meetings would be the best way to achieve this in Zoom.

You did make me think that Zoom webinar is better suited to how we use it though.

Mike McCarthy
Asst. City Planner
New Bedford

From: MassPlanners <massplanners-bounces at masscptc.org> On Behalf Of Colleen Canning via MassPlanners
Sent: Thursday, August 3, 2023 10:46 AM
To: massplanners at masscptc.org
Subject: [EXTERNAL] [Massplanners] Virtual Executive Session


Re: Virtual Executive Session


Hi Planners,


I would like to hear about successful experiences holding fully virtual executive session.


As I understand, to satisfy the letter of the law, a board must enter a ‘regular’ meeting and then the chair calls the meeting into executive session. This appears to pose a challenge with the limitations of hosting a zoom webinar/meeting.


For our typical meetings we have had success with zoom webinar as ‘panelists’ (board members, staff and applicants) are in view and ‘attendees’ (members of the public) are not in view and can only speak after ‘raising hand’ and being called upon by the chair to be promoted to ‘panelist’. I imagine this is how many planning boards use Zoom.


In my ideal version of a virtual executive session, we'd host a zoom webinar as typical and  then I’d manually remove all attendees when we enter executive session. During executive session,  new attendees would be in a virtual ‘ waiting room’ until a point at which executive session has ended and then I’d authorize all attendees to join. Unfortunately, it appears that zoom meeting (not zoom webinar) is the platform which allows for a ‘waiting room’. Zoom meeting is great for informal meetings but invites a level of chaos when hosting a public meeting. Zoom meeting does not allow for a separate ‘attendee’ category as all who join can be seen on camera and can speak without prior authorization.


Thank you for your responses!

Colleen Canning
Planning/Conservation Coordinator

(413)-538-5030 X6127
ccanning at southhadleyma.gov<mailto:ccanning at southhadleyma.gov>
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