Village and school district co-star in studio deal
Greenwood Village, Colo., knows that the Mayor’s Show must go on. Faced with losing its local government-access television program, the village partnered with the Cherry Creek school district to keep the show on the air. As part of the agreement, the village has provided equipment upgrades for the district’s television studio, and it is training students to produce the show.
When it began in January 1999, the Mayor’s Show was produced from a studio owned and operated by Denver-based TCI, which later merged with New York-based AT&T Broadband. During the show, Mayor David Phifer led discussions with panels of guests and covered topics such as the village’s judicial system, annexations, transportation, water quality, erosion control and school-related issues.
In spring 2001, AT&T announced that it would be closing all its production facilities in the Denver metropolitan area. The village immediately began searching for a new studio, knowing that building one could cost up to $500,000. A short time later, the village and the Cherry Creek school district reached an agreement to share the district’s television production facility.
The village spent nearly $20,000 on improvements to the district facility’s audio and lighting systems, and it installed equipment donated by AT&T at that site and at a post-production facility owned by the city. The Mayor’s Show was back on the air in August 2001.
Students began observing production last fall, and they will get more involved in the show in the coming months. “The school district is anticipating that a [training] program will be in place this spring,” says Melissa Gallegos, village management specialist. “Students will be able to assist with the production of the Mayor’s Show and learn how to operate a variety of video production equipment, including cameras.”
The village allocates approximately $28,000 annually to cover the costs of producing the show. That pays for supplies, personnel and maintenance expenses.