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Council approves Atlantic Avenue revitalization contract; mayor outlines paving, synchronized lights and linked surveillance cameras
Summary
The Atlantic City Council approved a contract for the Atlantic Avenue corridor revitalization and heard a mayoral update that the project — delayed by litigation — will include paving, synchronized traffic lights and fiber-linked cameras along Atlantic Avenue.
The Atlantic City Council on Sept. 17 approved a contract with South State Inc. for the Atlantic Avenue corridor revitalization and heard a presentation from the mayor outlining paving plans, synchronized traffic signals and plans to connect new cameras to the city’s surveillance network.
The mayor told the council the Atlantic Avenue work has been delayed by litigation but that “we came out with a compromise,” and thanked a congressman for helping secure release of grant funding. He said the project includes paving and traffic-device upgrades on Atlantic and segments of Pacific Avenue and that fiber installed with the street project will support cameras tied into the police department’s surveillance center.
Council members voted to approve the resolution to award the contract; the clerk recorded the vote as affirmative (the final roll call reflected eight votes in favor after a member changed her earlier vote). The council then received staff responses on how the camera equipment will be installed along the corridor and tied to the city’s fiber network.
City staff said the camera contract — funded in part by a congressional grant — will place fixed cameras along Atlantic Avenue following the new roadway alignment, from Albany Avenue down toward New Hampshire Avenue, and will connect to fiber that terminates at the Atlantic City Police Department surveillance center. Staff said the fiber had to be installed as part of the roadway construction before camera placement.
Mayor remarks to council, recorded in public comment and the presentation, described staged work on Pacific Avenue — “about 2, maybe 4 blocks” would be paved initially — and said some light synchronization on Atlantic and Pacific would be included. The mayor also thanked an identified member of Congress who, he said, “helped get the money released.”
City staff confirmed the camera work will be performed under a cooperative purchasing arrangement and will be added once the roadway contractor installs fiber. The contract award and the subsequent presentation did not include a detailed schedule for camera activation or a public timeline for when the synchronized lights will be fully operational.
Council members asked for clarity about scope and funding during the presentation. Staff and the mayor indicated that the street work and the fiber are part of the contract package, that the camera installations are the next step once fiber is in place, and that the camera project is intended to plug into the citywide surveillance platform.
The council did not vote on a separate camera purchase or service agreement at the Sept. 17 meeting; council approval on the Atlantic Avenue construction contract is intended to move the overall corridor work forward and to enable follow-on procurement for cameras and related systems.
