Talk moves forward on televised board meetings

C&H Tire Owner Jerry Hamel and Fort Smith City Administrator Ray Gosack met Thursday (March 15) to discuss the possibility of Hamel and a “group of five or six business owners” funding the television broadcasts of City Board meetings.

By both accounts, the meeting was a civil one, with Hamel expected “to turn in a letter of proposal by April 1,” Gosack said.

Hamel did not name the businesses that had approached him with the idea to share costs, but said he would indicate participating parties should he submit a proposal by the April 1 date, so the board could consider it at the April 10 meeting.

“Their (business owners) only expectation in return for doing that is they sponsor the broadcast of City Board meetings,” Gosack said.

Hamel confirmed he would not expect the city network to advertise his business as the sponsor, but that he would use the sponsorship in his own off-channel advertisements.

“If approved in April, it wouldn’t take effect til a few weeks after that,” Gosack said, noting that the city would have to contract with 777 Productions, the production company that formerly filmed the meetings, to “get everything set up.”

One point of contention the two men do share is the cost of funding. Gosack quoted a $27,000 annual figure for the television broadcasts, while Hamel said he and potential partners had looked into it and found the “same production company, same equipment” cost to be “between $1,000 and $1,200 per month.”

Travis Joiner, owner of 777 Productions, described to The City Wire the following prices and options:
• $24,000 per year for a 3-camera set
• $18,000 per year for a 2-camera set
• $14,400 per year for a 1-camera set

Joiner noted there could be an extra charge for overtime.

Hamel told The City Wire on Friday (March 16) that he and other business owners did not understand why the city couldn’t fund its own broadcasts once again “after the sales tax extension passed (on March 13),” he said.

“They (potential business partners) thought if the tax extension passed, you would have plenty of money there. Ray said all that money is dedicated, but they move money around like players on a chess board,” Hamel said.

Gosack said the issue of “moving money around” did not come up at Thursday’s meeting, but did address the comment.

“We don’t do that. We legally can’t do that. We provide full accountings of dedicated tax revenues monthly, of how those monies are spent. And with what was approved Tuesday, most of those are bond proceeds, which are held by a trustee. We send the invoices for bonded projects to the trustee, so the city will never actually see the money for those projects. The city doesn’t actually handle the money,” Gosack said.

Gosack continued: “It would be illegal and unconstitutional for us to do that. Now the quarter-percent tax extension that was approved, we will receive. But just like the others, every month we issue a public financial statement about how much has been received and how much is being spent. If we shifted money around, we wouldn’t be able to fulfill our commitment to the voters. It’s illegal for us to do that, and with bonded projects, it’s impossible for us to do that.”

Regardless of where the city stands on funding its TV broadcasts, Hamel continues to show interest in moving forward.

“We’re going to continue the dialog with the City Administration. I think it’s the right thing to do. It’s good for everyone’s conduct. If the meetings are conducted properly, it’ll make the city a more friendly place, and it’s good for the public to view what’s going on. I believe a lot of honesty and transparency in government is the only way to go,” Hamel said.

Hamel continued: “I would think if they were doing good work and they didn’t have anything to hide, it would be in their best interests to televise the meetings. That’s the American Way. I don’t know what they’re hiding from, but they seem skittish about people seeing what they’re doing. And it’s confusing to me why they wouldn’t want to let people see the meetings.”